Heir of The Phoenix: Fate
by Mockingbirdflyaway
Summary: When a one night stand comes back to haunt Harry in the form of 11 year old spitfire Jenny Hansen, can he have any hope of reconnecting with her or the woman that he left behind?
1. Prologue

A/n: I've removed all but two lines ofthe song lyricsin this chapter. I hated doing it, but with new rules... grumbles

_Heir of the phoenix:Fate_

Prologue, part I: Genevieve Hansen, 12 years before

Being crazy wasn't something that Genevieve Hansen relished.

Unfortunately for her, her best friend Angela loved and worshiped insanity and being spontaneous. Their friends and family often wondered how the two got along. They were at opposite ends of the personality spectrum. Night and Day was a common description for them.

Genevieve was the quiet type who preferred curling up with a book or playing her clarinet. Angela was the popular party animal/Drama queen (Although you could not say the latter to her face and hope to get away un-injured,), who went through boyfriends like one went through tissues when they had a cold.

Therefore, when Angela showed up on her doorstep at 10:00pm on a Friday night, crying her head off, Genevieve wasn't very surprised.

"Ohh, what's wrong Angie!" cried Genevieve, helping her friend to the large, plush couch that graced her living room.

"It's Rick...he dumped me!" sniffed Angela, her lip trembling pathetically. "I don't know why though... I thought he was the sweetest guy on Earth! We were going to get married and have three kids!"

With that, she started bawling. A light bulb went off in Genevieve's head. "Hey... Rick wasn't the guy who caught you kissing that other guy... was he?" she asked hesitantly.

"Yes, but that kiss didn't mean anything, I was just having some fun!" wailed Angela, her tears renewed.

"And you've been dating this guy for how long?" Genevieve had given up trying to keep up with her best friend's love life. It made her feel better, considering she hadn't been on a date for nearly eight months.

"Two weeks! The longest in over a year!"

Genevieve's eyebrows hit her hairline.

"I thought he was Mr. Right! He was sooo perfect, but now I know he's just a sleaze out for getting into a girl's pants!" continued Angela, blubbering.

Genevieve's eyebrows went higher, if that was possible.

Going into sympathy mode, she went into the kitchen, made some raspberry tea, and brought out some German chocolates that she kept for events like this.

When she came back out into the living room she handed Angie her tea and sat down next to her and patted her back.

"Oh Genie, you're the best friend ever!" cried Angela, another wave of tears cascading how her cheeks.

There were a few moments of silence while Angela continued sniffling.

"What should we do to get your mind off this?" asked Genevieve, getting ready to prescribe a few days of chick flick marathons.

Angela coming sobbing on her doorstep happened often, almost every odd week. By the 34th time (Genie had been counting) they had established a pattern, Genevieve doubted that Angela noticed it, but it was there. Angela would be over Rick within three days and back on the dating scene by the fourth.

Instead of wailing, "Oh, I'll never forget ..." (Fill in blank) Angela did something she didn't normally do.

"Let's go clubbing!"

Genevieve froze. _What the hell did she just say? No no no no..._

"WHAT?"

"You can wear that cute new dress you have and I can do your hair and you can do mine and we can go have fun!"

Angela was on a roll, and nothing could stop her, although Genevieve did try.

She grabbed Genevieve by the arm and dragged her, protesting, to her bedroom and started rummaging through her closet, throwing various outfits onto the bed.

"Angela! You know I can't dance in public!" cried Genevieve, sheet white.

"You play that clarinet of yours in public!" retorted Angela, her voice muffled.

"That's different! When your sitting in an orchestra, no one can tell it's you playing!"

"So?"

"Angela! I'm not going out tonight!"

"Oh yes you are, we're going to go have fun and damn Rick to hell! Here, put this on..."

With that, she handed her a dress and shoved Genevieve into the bathroom. Through the door, she could hear Genevieve wail, "I'm not wearing THIS!"

"Yes you are!"

"But it's yours!"

"You borrowed it!"

"For a masquerade party, where no one could tell it was me!"

"I could!"

"Yes, because it was _YOUR_ dress"

"Just put it on!"

Genevieve sighed; she wasn't going to win this time. She pulled on the strappy number and peered into the mirror. The deep blue color of the dress matched her sparkling eyes and flowed down to her shins. Her long curly chestnut hair was waist length and free, causing it to bounce whenever she turned her head.

With an aura of dread, she walked out of the bathroom.

"OH MY GOSH, you look _gorgeous_!" cried Angela.

"No I don't! This dress is WAY too revealing!" squeaked Genevieve "At least let me wear the shawl that I had for the party!"

"No! And that dress is _not _too revealing,"

"Yes it is!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"YES!"

"NO!"

"YES, and let's stop this before we both turn blue!" Genevieve screeched. Angela blinked in surprise at Genevieve's outburst, before popping back into her normal happy mood.

"Okay" said Angela "Now lets go!" She grabbed her purse and Genie's and hauled her loudly protesting friend out the door. A few minutes later, they were sitting in Angela's bright yellow car, cruising towards The Palm Tree, a popular club in downtown London.

Genevieve was moaning to herself. She hated dancing and crowds. Just like Angela to drag her into something she didn't want to do. How on Earth could they be best friends?

_Maybe because you guys have known each other since birth, maybe because she saved your life, maybe because she was the only one who would talk to "grubby nerdy Genie" in school... Maybe because she's always there for you even when she's being annoying._ Genevieve's mind told her darkly.

She resigned herself to a night of a unique form of torture.

Angela noticed her dark mood and laughed.

"It won't be that bad you know! We dance, we drink, we hook up with some hot guys, and go home!" She said cheerfully.

Genevieve sighed. As much as Angela could read her mind and understand her, one thing that Angela didn't understand was the shyness. She didn't see a reason for it and often ignored the fact that Genevieve could barely bring herself to speak to strangers, except on rare occasions.

When they got to the club, Genevieve refused to get out of the car. Angela brought out her hidden guns.

"If you don't get out, I won't tell you where I hid your clarinet."

"WHAT!" screeched Genevieve, launching herself out of the car towards her friend's throat. Angela quickly slammed the car door and locked it before Genie realized that she had been had.

"Where did you put it!" cried Genie, flailing at the shorter woman's neck.

"No where" replied Angela, grinning, "It's still on its stand in your den."

"What... Oh... Angela!" Genevieve slumped. _How can she always pull that me? I bloody well fall for it every time... hook, line and sinker..._

"Come on now!"

Genevieve held up her hands in defeat.

"Fine, you win Angie."

"Yay!"

Genevieve couldn't help but laugh at Angela's random cheerfulness, considering she had been dumped less than two hours before.

Angela grabbed Genie's arm and led up to the entrance of the place. Waving their ID's at the bouncer, they went inside. Genevieve had been here twice before, once on a girl's night out and once again on Angie's 22nd birthday two years ago, the first time she had drank too much beer and passed out on one of the sofa's, That had been the first time she had drank more than a glass of anything alcoholic. It was not an experience that she cared to repeat.

For Angie's birthday, she had been the designated driver, hadn't touched a drop of the vile thing called alcohol and stood in the corner, fending off desperate males and wanting to disappear.

Once they were in the club and the pounding music had greeted them, Angela was snapped up by a guy right away. Genie snorted. Typical.

Men never noticed her the way she wanted them too. They never noticed her music or her 'smarts' as Angie called it. All they noticed was her body. She had been blessed (cursed?) to be pretty.

She wandered over to the bar and sat down in a corner. The barman didn't even notice her in the gloom.

Suddenly the music changed from a slow song... _Celine Dion?_ She wondered to absently herself to a faster paced song. Dancing Queen, by ABBA. Her favorite song.

Genevieve Hansen could dance. She just hated doing in front of other people. Angie knew that from when they were little and they stole her older sister, Margaret's records and danced around the Hansen's living room.

_You can dance, you can jive, having the time of your life _

See that girl, watch that scene, dig in the Dancing Queen...

Genevieve decided that she couldn't resist temptation. It was her favorite song after all and no one besides Angela knew her.

Finding a quiet spot on the floor, she went into concert mode and forgot that anyone else was there. She began to dance.

Within seconds, Genevieve was totally into it, unaware of the several eyes watching her. Angela was recovering from shock. She'd never seen her best friend this free and wild in a public place.

As the chorus came on, Genevieve felt someone come up behind her and begin dancing with her. Against her better judgment, she grinded into his hips. Whoever this guy was, he was a good dancer. He felt nice too.

Themusic faded almost too quickly andshe turned to face her silent dance partner. A tall handsome man was standing there. His intense emerald eyes bore into her blue ones. He had untidy I-Just-rolled-out of-bed black hair that hung over his eyes slightly. He was wearing dark jeans and a green button down shirt that matched his eyes and emphasized his chiseled body. Over all he was damn sexy. Angela would be jealous. Very Jealous.

Genevieve knew she couldn't waste an opportunity like this.

He gave her a heart stopping lop-sided grin.

"Want a drink?" he asked, his green eyes twinkling in the strobe lights. Genevieve tried to guess how old he was. Not much older than she, of that, she was sure.

"Sure..." she answered faintly, smiling.

He took her hand and lead her to the bar.

"Two beers please" he requested of the barman, forking over a few pound notes.

They sat down next to each other.

Finally Genevieve couldn't take it anymore.

"What's your name?" she blurted.

The man paused and smiled. "The name's Harry, what's yours?"

"Genevieve"

He nodded.

"What do you do?" Genie asked curiously.

The man-Harry-jerked slightly and went into deep thought.

"I'm in law enforcement, but I'm thinking about teaching." he answered slowly.

Genevieve felt her mood brighten. She was a kindergarten teacher, she loved little kids.

They began too talk and several hours (and drinks) later, Harry (who wasn't exactly himself, due to the beer, but still was quite amiable and attracted to the beautiful Genevieve.) stood up and grinned at her and asked

"So... you want to go to my place or yours?"

Genevieve smiled and hiccupped slightly.

"Maybe mine?" she replied, giggling.

* * *

Prologue, part II: Harry, 12 years before 

Harry Potter ran his hand through his messy black hair; He sat at a table in the back of The Palm Tree.

He smiled inwardly at why he was here, Hermione had got him and Ron addicted to muggle clubbing. The Palm Tree was one of their favorite places to hang out and dance. He could see the two of them dancing through the crowd. Ron and Hermione had been dating since the end of their seventh year and Ron had recently asked Hermione to marry him.

Personally, Harry liked muggle clubs better, no one recognized him. At wizarding clubs, as soon as word got out that the great Harry Potter was in 'da club, he was swamped by women who wanted to dance and do...other things. He hated the attention. In muggle clubs, he could sit in the back and watch people dance.

The music was loud and pounding. Harry leaned back, closed his eyes, and absorbed the rhythm. Several minutes passed.

Harry felt a tap on his shoulder and opened his eyes. Ron was standing there grinning. His red hair flashed oddly in the strobe lights

"You taking a nap?" he asked in an amused tone of voice.

"Nope" answered Harry, laughing.

Ron took a seat.

"Where's Hermione?" asked Harry

"Getting drinks, I offered... but...erhm...remember last time?"

Last time Ron had tried to get drinks with muggle money had ended rather disastrously; Ron had accidentally given the barman a five-pound note when he was asked for a ten pound. The end result was that the barman felt cheated and kicked Ron out.

The two of them laughed at the memory. Hermione didn't quite trust Ron with muggle money anymore.

Through the crowd Hermione appeared, clutching three beers and her purse.

"Hi guys," she said cheerfully, passing around the drinks.

Harry sipped his while Ron threw his back. Hermione watched this with amusement.

"That is one sure fire hangover you're going to get tomorrow Ron." She said mildly. "How many have you had already?"

"Six, but I feel fine," He answered, his voice was only slightly slurred.

Hermione raised an eyebrow and mouthed to Harry 'ten... nine... eight... seven... six... five... four... three... two...one.'

Ron keeled over and began to snore.

Harry felt his eyes widen. Hermione shrugged.

"As much as he loves the stuff, Molson Canadian doesn't agree with magic." She said lightly, shaking her head.

"Oh," replied Harry, still giving his best friend an odd look.

"I'd better take him home. Good night Harry" she discreetly pulled out her wand and silently cast a charm on Ron that made him lighter. She hauled Ron to his feet and his head flopped on her shoulder. Hermione guided the passed-out Ron across the dance floor and out the club's front entrance.

Harry watched them go with a sigh.

Then he saw her.

Two women had just come into the club, the first one had short, stylish blond hair and brown eyes and was wearing a red mini dress with a black coat, and she was all but dragging another woman.

The second woman had waist length curly chestnut hair and sparkling blue eyes, she was wearing a flowing blue dress that brought out her pretty eyes.

Eyes that looked like they wanted to be anywhere but here.

He watched as the first woman was snagged by a man to go dance. The second woman looked extremely uncomfortable.

She looked around for a while, then wandered over to the bar and sat in the shadows. Harry watched her with fascination; it had been awhile since he had seen someone who completely deserved the term 'eye-candy'.

He watched her for two songs. She didn't notice him, nor did she pay attention to anyone at all.

Soon a fast song with a good beat came on. He remembered Hermione telling him once that it was called "Dancing Queen".

He watched as the shy woman's personality evaporated, she seemed entranced by the music. She left the bar, walked to a corner of the dance floor and began to dance.

One thing was for sure: She was a hell of a dancer.

Finally, Harry couldn't stand it anymore, he got up and walked up to the woman, He began to dance with her, He didn't know why.

When the song ended, She turned to him. Her large dark blue eyes watched his emerald ones. She was the type that you shouldn't let escape from you, that much he could tell. So, He did what any sensible guy would do.

"Want a drink?"

She looked a bit startled.

"Sure." she said quietly, a shy smile on her face.

Harry took her hand and led her over to the bar.

"Two beers please" he asked the barman, fishing a couple of pounds out of his pocket. The barman returned with their drinks and Harry paid him.

Handing the beautiful woman her drink, he took a sip.

"What's your name?" she blurted.

He paused.

"The name's Harry, what's yours?"

"Genevieve"

'A beautiful name for a beautiful woman' thought Harry. Why was he feeling like this? It took a lot for him to fall for someone. Something just seemed to tell him to not let her get away.

"What do you do?" She asked, sipping the beer politely.

Harry froze. 'I can't just go off and tell her I'm an Auror! She's a muggle!' he said sarcastically to himself in his head.

"I'm in law enforcement. But I'm thinking about teaching."

Harry was surprised that it slipped out of his mouth. He had never told anyone about his ambition to teach, not even Ron.

Harry noticed the woman- Genevieve- perked up at this.

"I teach kindergarten." She replied, "I love children"

Harry smiled.

"What else do you do?" He heard himself asking.

"Well... I play clarinet..."

Harry vaguely remembered hearing the muggle instrument being played at an assembly in his primary school, before he had even heard of Hogwarts. He had liked the low, warm sound of it.

"Interesting..." He replied, "I like sports"

"What type of sports?" she asked

Harry stopped himself just in time from saying 'Quidditch', Thinking quickly - He remembered Dean's favorite sport.

"Football" He answered quickly. Genevieve gave him a strange look.

"I'm no good at any sports, except skating and dancing, and even then..."

"You're a very good dancer!" blurted Harry. He found himself wondering why this woman made him so honest and open. It was starting to feel slightly weird.

Genevieve smiled shyly.

"Thank you"

After several more hours of talk and drinks, Harry had a sudden impulse.

"So... You want to go to my place or yours?"

The little voice in the back of his head started yelling at him, but he ignored it. It wasn't really giving any real warnings, just a general 'that's not such a great idea' impression.

Genevieve looked faintly startled.

After a moments thought, she said, "Maybe mine?"

"Alright."

* * *

Bright light shone against Harry's closed eyes. 

He opened his eyes and immediately closed them again, for the headache that had been faint until then jolted when he opened his eyes.

Gathering his reserve, he slowly opened his eyes again. The sight that he saw wasn't one that he expected.

Curled up against him was the woman from the club. He looked around him and saw that he was in a room not familiar to him. 'Probably her room.' He thought dryly. He was lying in her bed, naked.

That thought didn't sit well with him. Harry rolled onto his back and groaned. What had he and she been doing? He glanced at her sleeping form. It wasn't hard to guess, considering she was naked also.

He couldn't even remember her name. _Gen.. Jean... Stupid hangover..._

Harry sighed and sat up. Their clothing littered the floor, He couldn't remember much at all through his headache and hangover. He spotted his wand laying half hidden underneath his jeans.

Oh Merlin, he'd have a lot of explaining to do if she had woken up before him.

He silently crawled out of the bed and pulled on his clothes. Then he looked back at her. She looked quite sweet, hair spread out around her, sleeping there among the ruffled sheets, he caught himself thinking. He walked back over to the bed and kissed her lightly on the forehead.

Then he walked out into the hallway.

With a sharp 'CRACK', he disapparated.

* * *

Genevieve awoke with a clouded mind. 

She moaned and rolled over onto her back, opening her eyes. Seeing her familiar ceiling, she sighed with relief.

Straining her memory, she could see a man with green eyes, but most things were fuzzed over by her headache.

Sitting up, Genevieve looked around.

He was gone.

"Ohh Nooo..." She moaned, flopping back down on the bed.

Genevieve sighed; it wasn't the end of the world. Was it?

Slowly Genie hauled herself out of bed and into the shower. After toweling herself off, she wrapped herself in a robe and padded into the kitchen, She fixed herself some scrambled eggs and ate slowly.

Then She heard the front door open.

"Genie?" called a familiar voice. Angela.

"Yah?" Genevieve called out.

"Okay, you're here." Angela appeared in the kitchen doorway. "When did you leave The Palm?" She asked

"I don't know" Not wanting Angie to start bugging and questioning her about the man, she continued "I was tired, so I took a cabbie home"

"Ah."

"So where were you?" Genie asked in an amused tone of voice.

"I was there till it closed."

"Ah..."

A few weeks passed and the image of the man retracted itself into the back of her mind.

The school year started and she threw herself into her teaching, playing the clarinet for her class, teaching them numbers, letters, Colors, words.

It was a week into the school year when one day when she was reading a story to her class that she felt violently ill.

Throwing the book down and calling out to her class to be good and not to fight and that'd she be right back, She tore out of the classroom for the bathroom.

Reaching a girl's bathroom just in time, she flew into a stall and threw up her breakfast into the loo.

A small girl in fifth forum peered into the open stall.

"Are you alright Miss Hansen?"

Genevieve stood up shakily.

"I feel Ill. please go get the Headmistress."

"Alright" The girl chirped and skipped out of the girl's toilets. A few minutes later, she came back with Headmistress on her heels. They found Genevieve leaning over brother john throwing up some more.

"Thank you Suzy, you may go back to class now" Said the Headmistress, Doctor Anna Covington to the girl.

"Okay" And the girl left.

"Genevieve, are you alright?" Asked Anna, She and Genie had known each other for several years and respected each other a lot despite their great age differences.

"What does it look like?" said Genie weakly, "I feel like I'm going to expel my stomach!"

Doctor Covington nodded.

"Go home and rest till you get over this bug, I'll find a substitute teacher for your class."

Genie smiled slightly. "Thank you"

"On second thought, I'll get Miss Desmond to drive you home, considering that you look like you're in no condition to drive..."

About fifteen minutes later, Genevieve was curled up in her bathroom at home with some pillows, the phone and a blanket. Her throwing up was so severe that she couldn't safely leave the tiny tiled room.

She called Angela.

After several tones, Angela picked up

"Hello?"

"Angie?"

"Genie! How are you?"

"Not good at all, I swear I'll expel my bloody insides if I keep throwing up."

"Ohh, not good... I'll be right over"

"Good"

"See you soon Genie"

"See you..."

Click.

As soon as she hung up, a horrible thought began to dawn on her. It had been roughly a month since the night with the man with the green eyes. Why hadn't she remembered his name? Or even what they had done? As soon as the image of him appeared in her mind, it was gone.

Nevertheless, the horrible suspicion was still there.

Morning sickness.

She buried her head in her hands and cried. That's how Angela found her, twenty minutes later.

"What's wrong Genie?" Asked Angie, pulling Genevieve's hands away from her face. Genie's dark blue eyes were filled with confusion and fear.

"Angie... There's something I didn't tell you about at the Palm Tree..." Genevieve began haltingly.

"What happened? Did someone do something to you?" asked Angela, concerned.

"Well..."

"What is it Genie?"

"There was a man... I remember dancing with him... and he bought me a drink... and we talked...I think we were both drunk... I woke up in my bed...I think... I think..." Genevieve stammered.

"You think what?" asked Angela, already knowing the answer.

"I think we had sex..." squeaked Genevieve.

"You don't remember?"

"No, not really, I don't even remember his name... all I remember is that he had green eyes."

"Uh oh..." Angela paused, then pulled her best friend into a hug.

"I can't have kids!" wailed Genie into her shoulder, "I'm only 24, and I'm not ready to support one!"

Angela pulled out of the sisterly hug and strode to the door.

"I'll be right back"

She was gone for twenty minutes and when she came back, she had a home pregnancy test.

"Here." She said, handing it to her best friend and stepped out of the bathroom and closed the door.

A few minutes later, Genevieve came out he door holding the test. A small blue line was visible. She sighed.

"I'm pregnant...I don't know what I'm going to do."

"You could give it up for adoption..." suggested Angela. Genevieve shook her head.

"No, I'm keeping my baby" she said quietly, "and maybe someday, we can figure out who daddy is..." She said, looking down at her stomach with a troubled expression.

The song is "Dancing Queen" by ABBA, so it doesn't belong to me!

Cheers!

Janna


	2. Jenny

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter; he belongs to the wonderful J.K. Rowling, Genevieve, Jenny, Angela, the story plot and all other original characters are mine however

Kady Rilla Wholi: Thank you for the review

* * *

Heir of the phoenix 

Chapter 1: Jenny.

Jenny Marie Hansen came to the end of her clarinet piece and, for a moment, she paused to look out the window at the large busy street that ran underneath her window. She and her mother, Genevieve, lived in a rather upscale neighborhood near Buckingham palace, in the house that her mother had lived in as a girl – A four story brick townhouse that had a back green and its own gazebo.

She could sense something odd in the air around her- it was thick with anticipation. Something important would happen today.

Shaking her head, Jenny shrugged off the feeling of precognition. It followed her around constantly, often actually fortelling things, but sometimes, it was wrong, so Jenny never really trusted it. She was different. She could sense things and do things she couldn't explain. When she was angry, things explode and when she was sad, it rained- literally - in the house. There was the wind - theawful wind that would take control and threaten to tear her apart at the seams.

Even her mother couldn't deny that she was different from other children, even though that difference was advantageous in some ways - it had allowed her to pick up the clarinet and master the low wooden instrument's complicated fingerings.

It was summer now and she was not looking forwardto sixth grade, come September. Another year of no one save her wall-flower friendCharlotte Ramsey in the corner of the school yard.

_She's the only person who talks to me… She isn't scared, like the others are. I wish they knew I didn't mean to hurt Bobby... it was... an accident..._

With a sigh, Jenny reached out and flipped her sheet of music over. Her mind was wandering so much that she wasn't even sure whether she was still actually playing what was on the sheet. For a moment she leaned forward to check. Vivaldi's _Spring_. Definitely not what she had been playing. She wasn't even sure how her mother had managed to slip that piece into her folder. Jenny had never really understood Genevieve's love of classical music and she was nowhere near the skill level required to play _Spring_.

_Give me some Louis Armstrong or Reel big Fish any day…to bad mum wouldn't go for the idea of trumpet lessons…_

Jenny was distracted by her mother's voice wafting up from the kitchen. She was talking to Aunt Angela, who was gearing up to become Ms.Willard Smith in January.

"You know what Angela? I ran into Gerald the other day - You know - Gerald Whitling - that boy that we bothsat forfor in college when he needed models for his portfolio? Well, you'd never believe what he's up tonow - He's a photographer for_Elle _magazine...Well, actually - no -he recognized me -but anyways, once he heard you were getting married, he offered to do your wedding pictures for free!"

Jenny winced when she heard Aunt Angela's happy squeal.

"Yes, he said that our pictures were the onesthat got him the job at _Elle - _" Genevieve paused. "I have his number and business card - Angela! You know I'm too busy for a date!"

Jenny grimaced upon hearing that.Aunt Angela was always trying to set her mum upwith lotsof men.It never seemed to work.It made her wonder whyAunt Angela even bothered - Surely she had a father already who Genevieveloved even if she wouldn't talk about him to her?

Jenny knew exactly three things about her father. One was that she had his eyes. Two was thather mother said that she musthave got her temper from him and the third thing was that he had left a long time ago. Genevive had never given her a straight answer as to when.

If anything,her mum seemed almost embarrased whenever she asked about her father.

With a shrug, Jenny set down her clarinet and stood. Picking a book up off her dresser, she crossed the room to the window seat that was situated under the only window that Jenny could open.Kneeling on thewindow seat, Jenny put down her book and hooked her fingersunder the latch and heavedit open.

"HoooooHOOO!" A mass of brown feathers appeared out of nowhere and barreled through the window.

"AHHHHHHH!" Screamed Jenny as she tumbledbackwards onto the floor, banging her head painfully as the feathered mass landed on her dresser.

"Jenny!" Genevieve's voice echoed up the stairs. Jennydidn't reply as she picked herself off the floor and stared at the feathered behemoth that sat on her desk. It was an owl.

"JENNY!" Footsteps banged up the stairs.Her mother appeared in the doorway, looking pale and worried.

"What's wrong?" she demanded.

"That...owl...flew...in...window... and...scared...me," stammered Jenny, pointing to the bird that was sitting on her dresser, looking rather disconcerted.Then she noticed the envelope on the floor with a fancy looking seal. Inching forward, Jenny picked it up and brought it over to where Genevieve stood and flipped it over.

As one, they both leaned forward to look at the address.

In swirly green handwriting, it read:

_Miss J. Hansen  
Second bedroom.  
18 Cheshire Lane.  
London._

There was no return address.

Jenny and Genevieve stared at each other.

"Well, we should open it!" exclaimed Jenny.

"No, we should have it checked out." Replied Genevieve, cautiously.

"It's not dangerous."

Genevieve looked at her daughter. There was such firmness and belief in that last statement. Against her better judgement, she nodded. Slowly, Jenny slitted the top with her letter opener and pulled out the several pieces of parchment. She began to read the first one when she gasped.

"What?" Genevieve was dying to know what was in that letter.

"Dear Miss Hansen, We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of witchcraft and wizardry; we await your owl by no later than 31 July.

Sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall Deputy headmistress" Jenny read out loud slowly.

Genevieve looked at her in shock and grabbed the letter, re-reading it three times.

"What list?" she asked.

Jenny opened up the next piece of parchment.

_HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY_

_Uniform: First year students will require:  
Three sets of plain work robes (black)  
One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear  
One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)  
One winter cloak (black, silver fastenings)  
Please note that all pupils' clothes should carry nametags._

_Set books:  
The standard book of spells (grade 1) by Miranda Goshawk  
A history of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot  
Magical theory by Adalbert Waffling  
A beginner's guide to transfiguration by Emeric Switch  
One thousand magical herbs and fungi by Phyllida Spore Magical drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger  
Fantastic beasts and where to find them by Newt Scamander  
The Dark Arts: A practical guide to protecting yourself from them by Harry Potter_

_Other Equipment:  
1 wand  
1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)  
1 set of glass or crystal phials  
1 set of brass scales._

_Students may also bring an owl OR a cat OR a toad._

_PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS._

Genevieve was stunned.

Jenny was even more so.

_I'm...a witch?_ she thought _does that mean that I'm going to grow warts and stuff...like a green face? Oh…Ew…_

"What the hell..." A hard voice came from the door of Jenny's bedroom; Angela was standing there trying to look annoyed, but failing miserably.

"What is going on? I hear a scream over the telephone, then a crash, then no one answers... what am I supposed to think?" she demanded with her hands on her hips.

Genevieve shoved the letter in Angela's hands without a word.

Angela pulled open the paper with such ferocity, had it been normal paper, it would have ripped. Her eyes darted back and forth as she scanned the swirly green handwriting with raised eyebrows.

"Whaaaaaaa?" she gasped, her mouth dropping open.

"I don't know either. It maybe a prank of some type..." replied Genevieve, frowning and crossing her arms, "one of those kids from Jenny's comprehensive,"

"It's not..." murmured Jenny, who staring at the heavy paper intently, her brow furrowed.

Both Angela and Genevieve gave Jenny startled looks, and it was though a giant thought bubble had appeared over their heads with _'and how the hell would you know?' _in it.

"It's not a prank... I don't know how, but I can feel it."

"Alright..." said Genevieve slowly.

"What does it mean by 'we await your owl'?" Asked Angela, squinting at the letter and turning it upside down as though that would make the meaning clearer. Both Genevieve and Jenny shrugged.

As if on cue, the large barn owl that had scared Jenny half to death soared in the window and landed on her dresser, hooting at them cautiously and looking as though it was ready to high tail it.

"Um...maybe we send a letter back?" suggested Jenny quietly, walking towards her desk.

The owl hooted exuberantly.

She took some of the stationary off my desk and scribbled a reply that she would like to attended whatever school it was and asking where on earth would she get any of the supplies.

Jenny folded it up but before she could reach for an envelope the owl snatched it in his beak and soared out the window.

"That was weird..." breathed Angela

"Understatement if there ever was one," muttered Genevieve darkly, making for the door of Jenny's bedroom. "I need some Ben & Jerry's"

"Count me in," remarked Angela weakly, following her, "and make sure there are rainbow sprinkles on top."

Jenny trailed after the two of them down stairs to the kitchen.

Genevieve pulled the double chocolate fudge ice cream out of the freezer and served up three very large helpings, making sure to add sprinkles to both Angela's and Jenny's.

They sat at the kitchen table eating in reflective silence.

Angela broke the quiet.

"What do they mean by 'witch'? Some warty old hag with a cauldron?"

Genevieve shrugged. "I don't know any, unless you count Mrs. Harbuckle, the fourth grade teacher,"

"Except me" Jenny couldn't help remarking.

"Right." Genevieve ruffled her hair affectionately.

"Mum!" she cried, smoothing her hair down frantically. It was messy enough.

Jenny savored her ice cream by taking small bites and wandered off into thought. _Could this be why I am so weird? I'm a witch?_ Then it hit her like a ton of bricks, those abilities ... _They're the magic! They felt that way, know that I knew how describe them._

* * *

The sun shone threw Jenny's window the next morning. 

She wondered what had woken her up from her fitful dreaming. Then she heard it.

Tap. Tap.

Jenny sat up and looked around her room sleepily. At the window, hovering outside with difficulty was the very large owl from the day before. In it's beak was a letter.

She flew out of bed and opened her window. The large owl landed on the sill and dropped the letter into my hand. Jenny hesitated for a second, and then stroked its back. Then, with a hoot, it was gone.

Jenny examined the letter carefully. Other than being less thick than the first one, it was virtually the same. Carefully, she tore it open.

'Dear Miss Hansen,' it read.

'I'm pleased to receive word that you will be attending Hogwarts, A map to Diagon Alley has been provided.

Sincerely, Minerva McGonagall Deputy headmistress'

Jenny looked into the envelope. In it was a normal tourist map of London. Unfolding it, she noticed it was labeled differently. Instead of marking things like the British museum, Trafalgar's square and Buckingham palace as tourist attractions, there were places like 'Bertie Bott's every flavor beans factory' and 'Merlin's laboratory tour'. She quickly re-read the title of the map.

'A Wizard's tourist map to Central London.' It read. Interesting...

Then Jenny noticed the small gold star, leaning in close and squinting, she discerned a very small label reading 'Diagon Alley'

It was in Central London, not far from King's Cross station.

* * *

The next day, if you stood on the right street a few blocks from King's cross station; you would see a brown haired girl with bright green eyes standing on a street corner. Her face was buried in a map and a woman, who appeared to be her mother, stood behind her and peered over her shoulder. 

"I don't get it!" wailed Jenny "Where is this place? We've been up and down both sides of this damn street at least six times. There isn't any signs or... or anything!"

Genevieve was getting frustrated also. They had been searching for an hour and found nothing that looked like it would sell a magic wand or a spell book.

Suddenly, someone cleared their throat behind them.

Jenny and her mother turned around quickly. A tall man with dark brown hair and brown eyes was standing there; he was wearing faded blue jeans and a polo shirt with West Ham's colors.

"Can I help you?" He asked.

Jenny and her mother exchanged glances, unsure of what to say.

"I couldn't help but notice the wizard's tourist map that the young woman was displaying to the muggle public." He continued in a low but amused tone of voice.

Jenny hastily shoved her map out of sight.

The man grinned at her. "You wouldn't want muggles asking questions now would you?"

"Uh...I guess not"

Jenny stared at the guy. Was he a wizard? He sure didn't look like what she imagined one would look like.

The man seemed to remember something.

"Oh! I forgot to introduce my self, my name's Dean, Dean Thomas" Jenny was surprised to find that he seemed so normal.

"My names Genevieve Hansen, and this is my daughter, Jenny" Said Genie, introducing herself. Jenny seemed to wrapped up in thoughts to do so.

"Are you a wizard?" blurted Jenny.

Dean smiled. "As a matter of fact, I am"

"Why do you look so normal?"

That question caught Dean off guard. Then he laughed. "I'll tell you later, now, let me guess, the two of you are looking for Diagon alley?"

"How did you know?" demanded Jenny.

Dean smiled again. "You and your mother standing on the corner consulting a map with confused expressions is a pretty familiar sight to me. In fact, the exact same thing happened to my parents and I, approximately 24 years ago."

"Do you know where it is now?" asked Jenny incredulously.

"Yes, I'll take you there, just follow me"

He led them across the street and down a bit and stood in front of a grubby looking pub that neither Jenny nor her mother had noticed. A rusting sign read 'The Leaky cauldron'.

"I never noticed this before!" exclaimed Genevieve.

Dean peered at her in an amused way.

"Most people don't"

With that, he led the two of them through the door.

* * *

My third chapter I'd never thought I would get this far :P 

Pretty please review! Thanx for reading.

¤Cyaz¤


	3. Diagon Alley

Summary: Jenny Hansen has always known she's been different from other children. Something powerful resides within her. She doesn't know who her father is. All her mother remembers is a passionate green-eyed stranger. When a mysterious letter appears for an enchanted school, Jenny wonders if this is the answer to her questions.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter; he belongs to the wonderful J.K. Rowling, Genevieve, Jenny, Angela, the story plot and all other original characters are mine however^_^  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Chuthulupenguin: Yes, I know Harry Potter is good and honorable and such. He was drunk, he didn't mean to get that way, he just kept ordering drinks as he and Genevieve talked. Don't worry, He is going to meet Jenny, and eventually he's going to find out he's her father and get to know her better. It'll just take awhile.  
  
Lindel Eryn: Thanks! ::beams:: it'll take awhile and both Jens and Harry will be VERY confused for awhile (shhhh, don't tell anyone:P)  
  
Erikalya Arvanesse: some people will suspect, some people will think it's coincidence that she looks like him, but eventually they'll figure it out  
  
Kadi Rilla Wholi: Yes, Harry will be Jenny's teacher... about Ron and Hermione... well you'll just have to read this chapter :P ::grins mischiviously::  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Heir of the phoenix  
  
Chapter 2: Diagon alley  
  
Inside The Leaky cauldron was as grubby as the outside of it. The aging bartender called out a greeting to Dean.  
  
" 'Ello Tom" Dean replied.  
  
"So who you got there?" asked Tom slyly  
  
"Tom!" exclaimed Dean, "I am engaged you know"  
  
"Right..." said the bartender slowly, suddenly remembering, "How's Lavender?"  
  
"Quite well, actually" laughed Dean. "I'll take these two out back," he said, motioning to Genevieve and Jenny.  
  
They stood there, rooted to the spot.  
  
"Well come on, I'm guessing the two of you don't have all day..."  
  
That shook them out of it and they followed him out the back door. Dean walked up to the dumpster, took out his wand and began counting bricks.  
  
"Is that your wand?" Asked Jenny, curious.  
  
"Yup, Ash wood and dragon heartstring, 11 inches"  
  
"Dragon?" said Genevieve faintly. Dean and Jenny didn't hear her. Dean had found the brick he was looking for and tapped it with his wand. It wriggled. Jenny stared at it with fascination. A small hole appeared in it. The hole grew and grew, through it; they could see what looked like a wide street. An arch began to form and soon the entrance to Diagon alley was open.  
  
Dean motioned for them to follow him again. They did. With wonder.  
  
Jenny could not believe her eyes; people of every size and description were hurrying about, some in normal clothing, some in odd robes. Here there was a young woman with blonde hair dragging a toddler and several loaded shopping bags around, there was a hunched old woman saying "Don't forget the frog legs, you did last time" to what looked like a storekeeper. Here was a group of excited boys her age glued to a window full of broomsticks. There was an older girl listening to an interesting looking walkman and muttering to herself.  
  
There were shops galore. Cauldron's, robes, an apocathery, supplies- everything... It was an amazing sight.  
  
While telling them about his school days, Dean led the two women, one older, one young, to Gringotts. When they stood in front of the impressive snow- white building, Genevieve had the presence of mind to ask, "What is this building?"  
  
"It's Gringotts, the wizards bank." Answered Dean.  
  
"Wizards have banks?"  
  
"One, this one, the creepy thing is that's run by goblins"  
  
"Goblins..." Genevieve trailed off.  
  
'Will wonders ever cease?' thought Genevieve to herself.  
  
Sure enough as the trio approached the door, they could see a short figure standing guard- a goblin. Jenny eyed it as they went past it into the building. Its expression did not change at all.  
  
Stepping into a large airy hall, they could see a long counter that stretched along the far was, sitting behind it where goblins doing numerous tasks. Dean brought them up to a bored looking goblin sitting next to an enormous till.  
  
It looked at them with vague interest. "Money exchange?" it asked.  
  
"Yes, Ms. Hansen here needs to do some exchanging."  
  
Genevieve gave Dean an alarmed look.  
  
"You guys have your own money?" she demanded.  
  
"Yes," The goblin cut in "We do, galleons, sickles and knuts"  
  
Genevieve raised an eyebrow. Jenny wasn't even paying attention, she was watching the goblin next to them weighing some huge gems and making notes in his ledger.  
  
"Alright" she said, stepping up to the bored looking goblin "what's the exchange rate?"  
  
"2 pounds a galleon," replied the goblin.  
  
Genevieve sighed.  
  
After several minutes of sorting cash and explaining, Genevieve led her daughter out the door, closely followed by Dean.  
  
"I have to go" He explained "Lavender is expecting me home for lunch. You may want to start by buying her" (he motioned to Jenny) "a wand," He pointed to a small shop.  
  
Genevieve and Jenny thanked him graciously and approached the ancient looking store.  
  
"Ollivanders: makers of fine wands since 382 BC" read the peeling sign on the door.  
  
Quietly, they entered the tiny shop. It was very silent and dusty and had a very magical feel to it. Even Genevieve felt the difference. Rows and rows of thin boxes lined dozens of shelves.  
  
"So... um... where's the owner?" asked Jenny in a whisper  
  
"Right behind you" said a soft voice.  
  
Both Jenny and Genevieve jumped and whirled around. Standing behind them was an ancient old man with misty pale grey eyes.  
  
"How did you..." Jenny started to demand.  
  
The old man waved his hand "That is of no conscience," he said wispily. He turned to take some boxes off the shelves. Suddenly he stopped and turned back to face them. He scrutinized Jenny's face closely. His old eyes widened considerably. Shaking his head, muttering to himself, he turned back to pulling boxes off the shelves.  
  
"No....it is not possible...." Jenny could hear him murmur  
  
"What isn't possible?" She demanded irritably. "Jenny!" reproached Genevieve.  
  
Old Mr. Ollivander turned to her, startled. He looked at her carefully again. He watched her eyes for a minute. Jenny started to squirm under his thoughtful gaze.  
  
"It is just I could have sworn I had seen your eyes before." He said quietly.  
  
"Oh..." said Jenny  
  
"But it is not possible," continued Ollivander, "Now, we shall start you trying out wands, it is that the wand chooses the wizard you know"  
  
"Alright"  
  
Mr. Ollivander began to search through the label's on the boxes and found was he was looking for.  
  
"Try this, oak and unicorn hair," he said handing a wand to her. Jenny looked at him incrudiously.  
  
"Just give it a wave..." Jenny did so. Ollivander snatched it away from her.  
  
"Here, try this one...ash and dragon heartstring..." Before Jenny could even lift it, it was taken away.  
  
After several different wands had been handed to her and taken away, Jenny began to get frustrated.  
  
"What are you looking for?" she asked, struggling to keep her tone of voice civil.  
  
"You will see...." Said Mr. Ollivander mysteriously.  
  
After 45 minutes, even Mr. Ollivander seemed frustrated. "We...will... find...you...a...wand," He said slowly.  
  
"Here, a rare combination, Ebony and phoenix feather, 10 inches, powerful"  
  
Jenny took it. Instantly warmth spread from her hand to the rest of her body. Swishing it over her head, shimmering ribbons of rainbow colors flowed from its tip, a loud 'BOOM' echoed through the room.  
  
Mr. Ollivander dropped the several boxes of wands he was carrying and gaped at her in shock. Genevieve looked at her daughter, who was surrounded by the ribbons of multi-colored energy with pure amazement. Slowly the colors faded leaving an oddly blinking Jenny staring at them bemusedly.  
  
"What? Why are you staring at me?" She asked.  
  
Ollivander shook his head forcefully as if trying to expel something from his ears. Jenny could see that he was shaking violently.  
  
"Did I do something wrong?" asked Jenny timidly.  
  
"What? No, no, you didn't..." Mr. Ollivander snapped out of his reverie "but...but...how?" He shook his head again "curious...curious..."  
  
"What is?" asked Genevieve.  
  
"It is just that in all my years of running this shop, and mind you it has been many many years, I have never seen that sort of reaction from a wand...usually it is just sparks..." He said softly, almost reverently "Your wand's core, a phoenix feather...It is related too two other wands, both have done great things, one was evil, one was good...It surprises me that that particular wand chose you..."  
  
"Oh..." said Jenny quietly, staring at the wand in her hand with renewed awe.  
  
Paying 7 galleons for her new wand, they left the shop with the echoes of Mr. Ollivanders farewell following them.  
  
After several hours of searching different shops and asking directions, all that needed to be bought had been bought with the exception of Jenny's books. Just about everywhere, she had seen children her age buying things and looking around. Out of instinct, she had avoided them. Then she remembered, they were the same as she was...magical.  
  
Genevieve was feeling overwhelmed. Never before had she felt so lost. Jenny had adapted to the magic thing so fast it was scary. After getting directions to the book store, Flourish and Blotts  
  
"Hey Jens," She said, "Do you mind going alone? I'm feeling so overwhelmed, I need some ice cream..." she continued, spotting the ice cream parlour.  
  
"Sure Mum!" Jenny couldn't wait to do something on her own. Genevieve gave her the rest of the heavy coins that passed for wizarding money.  
  
"I'll be in that ice cream parlour if you need me, don't go anywhere that doesn't feel right, and if you have any left over money, buy yourself something..."  
  
"Okay!" said Jenny brightly and took off before Genevieve could finish her sentence. Genevieve sighed and smiled, Then she began to make her way towards to the ice cream place with the multitude of their packages and bags.  
  
Collapsing into a chair at a table in the crowded ice cream place, she gave the waitress her order for a double chocolate sundae. She began to muse about the day when a voice punctuated her thoughts.  
  
"Is this seat taken?" It asked.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ (A/n: hee hee hee, cliffie)  
  
Jenny loved prowling between the bookshelves in this store, there were so many things to look at, books had interesting titles, like "Curses and counter curses, how to bewitch your friends and befuddle your enemies" by Professor Vindictus Viridian or "Stars: reading the future" by Aliayah Astromon.  
  
There were huge leather bound books with odd symbols and tiny silk covered ones, some books had nothing in them, and some had tons of information.  
  
She had already bought her schoolbooks, plus an interesting looking book called "Hogwarts, A History" which the clerk at the counter assured her would be useful. She still had quite a bit of gold left when she walked out of the shop.  
  
Noticing the shop with several broomsticks in the window, she went over to take a look. There were a few boys still standing there, looking at what looked like a special display. Checking the sign above the door, she noted the name of it was "Quality Quidditch supplies"  
  
'Whatever that is' she thought with amusement. Out of curiosity, she went in. migrating through the shelves equipment to the "Books" section, she looked around.  
  
Turning a corner, she ran full into someone. Hard.  
  
"Whuf!" she fell backwards, the wind knocked out of her. Thump. She hit the floor, banging her head painfully.  
  
"Owww..." she moaned, screwing her eyes shut.  
  
"Gee...I'm sorry mate." Said a voice.  
  
Jenny opened her eyes, standing above her was a boy about her age, he had flaming red hair and an apologetic look on his face. He offered her hand and helped her to her feet.  
  
"I'm so sorry..." he said again.  
  
"No it's alright, it was mostly my fault, I should've been looking where I was going."  
  
The boy opened his mouth to say otherwise.  
  
"No, It's alright," said Jenny firmly.  
  
The boy grinned sheepishly. "I'm Edward...Edward Weasley," he said, offering her his hand to shake. "But you can call me Eddie"  
  
"Jenny Hansen." Said Jenny, shaking it.  
  
"So...hello" The boy named Eddie said  
  
"Hi" replied Jenny. "Are you going to Hogwarts too?"  
  
The boy started to look at her like she was stupid to ask such a thing but caught himself. "Yes..." He answered "Are you muggle-born?.....not that it really matters" he added hastily  
  
"Muggle born?" Jenny asked curiously.  
  
"Erhm... Are your parents non magical?"  
  
"Oh! I guess they are...or at least my mum is... I have no idea who my dad is..."  
  
"Ah..."  
  
An uncomfortable silence ensued. Eddie broke it.  
  
"Do you know anything about Quidditch?"  
  
"What's Quidditch?"  
  
"I guess you don't, it's this really great sport!" Eddie began to explain all the rules and tell her about his favorite teams. Jenny listened with fascination.  
  
"My dad was on the Gryffindor Quidditch team at Hogwarts, so was his best friend, and three of my uncles at different times..." Eddie continued  
  
"Gryffindor?"  
  
"Hogwarts has four houses; Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin... you don't ever want to be in Slytherin though"  
  
"Why?"  
  
" 'Cos they're an evil lot" replied Eddie  
  
"Who said that?"  
  
" Me mum and dad, and just about everyone else."  
  
"Do you wanna meet my mum?" Asked Eddie. "She was also muggle-born, I guess you two could relate"  
  
"Sure!" replied Jenny  
  
"Come on, she's at the ice cream parlor"  
  
"Ohh!, So's my mum"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Genevieve turned; standing behind her was a slightly frazzled looking woman holding some shopping bags and a sleepy looking toddler.  
  
"Nope, You having an insane day also?"  
  
The woman flopped down into the chair, dropping the bags and placing the toddler- a little girl with red hair- on her lap.  
  
"You could say that,..." said the woman "My names Hermione Weasley and this..." (She motioned to the little girl, who had dozed off) "...Is Molly"  
  
"Genevieve Hansen"  
  
"Pleased to meet you, you look a bit worn out yourself"  
  
"Talk about it..." Genevieve sighed, "I feel totally lost"  
  
Hermione looked at her closely. Realizing that Genevieve was a muggle, she said:  
  
"My parents could relate...You should have seen my father when I got my Hogwarts letter, I think it shocked him that I was going to be so far away, in both distance and worlds, my mother on the other hand was thrilled."  
  
"You were from a non-magical family?" asked Genevieve  
  
"Yes"  
  
"What's Hogwarts like? I'd like to know where Jenny's going"  
  
"Hogwarts is my favorite place in the world....It's a gigantic castle in Scotland, it has beautiful grounds and a lake, The biggest library I've ever seen, there's secret passageways, ghosts, feasts...Oh I could go on and on, when I was there I had two best friends, we were inseparable, We sometimes got into quite a bit of trouble..." Hermione laughed at some of the memories "Ron and Harry were the two best of friends that I could ever have, Harry couldn't believe that Ron and I could get married, because we used to bicker so much"  
  
Genevieve laughed at that.  
  
"You should see me and my friend Angela, most wonder how we could get along, we are as different as night and day"  
  
"Mum!" a boy appeared behind Hermione, she jumped.  
  
"Eddie!" she scolded lightly "Don't scare me like that"  
  
"Sorry mum..."  
  
Genevieve looked at the boy closely, he had flaming red hair and Hermione's brown eyes, his nose and cheeks were littered with pale brown freckles. Behind him stood Jenny.  
  
"Hi mum" she said. Eddie paused and looked between the two of them. Comprehension dawned on him.  
  
"She's your mum?" he whispered in Jenny's ear  
  
Jenny nodded.  
  
"Here mum" She deposited the bag of books in her mother's lap.  
  
"Did you have any spare money?"  
  
"Yah...but I didn't buy anything"  
  
"Why not?" asked Genevieve  
  
"Well...how are you supposed to pick what you want? There's so much cool stuff!" replied Jenny.  
  
"Why don't you buy an owl?" cut in Hermione  
  
"An OWL?" asked Jenny and Genevieve at the same time, Jenny with an excited expression and Genevieve with a surprised one.  
  
"Yes, An owl is a useful pet, they are very loyal and they even carry your mail,..." continued Hermione  
  
"Like the one that delivered my Hogwarts letter?" asked Jenny  
  
"Yes"  
  
"That would be SO cool" Jenny exclaimed, "Can I mum?"  
  
Genevieve shrugged "Sure"  
  
"Yay! Thank you mum!" Jenny rushed over and hugged her.  
  
After taking directions from Hermione, Eddie and Jenny sprinted off down the street.  
  
"You know, she hasn't hugged me for quite awhile," commented Genevieve.  
  
Hermione snorted, "You should see my Eddie"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Jenny and Eddie quickly found Eeylops' owl emporium and emerged with a beautiful silver owl in a cage.  
  
Jenny had been drawn to the calm wise owl as soon as she had entered the shop. She could tell this owl was way better than some of the others. When they had looked at her in her cage, she had gazed back at them with polite curiosity.  
  
"This is the one I want," Jenny proclaimed. The young shopkeeper had opened the cage and the owl had fluttered out landed on Jenny's shoulder and nipped her ear affectionately.  
  
As Jenny and Eddie approached the ice cream place where their mothers were talking they discussed names for Jenny's new owl.  
  
"Maybe Moonsilver?" suggested Eddie  
  
Jenny glanced at the owl; it gave her a reproachful look.  
  
"Maybe not...How about Cygnus? (The owl gave her a politely horrified look, if such a thing was possible)...No, I've got it! Athena! After the goddess of wisdom!"  
  
Athena the owl hooted her approval.  
  
"I'm happy you like it, because I like it too, it suits you" Said Jenny to her owl.  
  
Athena hooted graciously.  
  
Eddie watched the interactions between his new friend and her owl. He couldn't help but think about how pretty she was. Her green eyes radiated intensity and intelligence; her long, slightly messy, curly chestnut hair framed her face just right...  
  
Eddie shook his head. Why the heck was he thinking this? He barely knew Jenny yet he felt like he had known her all his life. It was strange, unsettling and comforting at the same time.  
  
"Mum! Look at my owl, isn't she beautiful?" called out Jenny to her mother when they were in earshot.  
  
"Ohh! She is!" Was Genevieve's enthusiastic reply. Then she caught sight of her watch.  
  
"Oh! We have to meet Angela! I forgot what time it is!"  
  
Hermione nodded, then she reached into her purse and fished out a piece of parchment and a pen. She quickly scribbled something and handed it to Genevieve.  
  
"Here's our phone number," She said.  
  
"Wizards have phones?" asked Jenny incredulously  
  
"Most don't, but I have to keep in touch with my parents some how don't I? And Ron needs it because of his work" she replied in an amused tone of voice.  
  
"Ah"  
  
"Goodbye, I hope we have a chance to chat again," said Genevieve  
  
"It's been a pleasure," replied Hermione, smiling.  
  
"See you on the train Jenny" said Eddie.  
  
"See you too!"  
  
Hermione and Eddie watched as Genevieve and Jenny disappeared from sight in the direction of the Leaky Cauldron.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
So there was chapter four. I was seriously considering having Jenny bump into Harry instead of Eddie, but I decided to keep you all waiting on the edge of your seats :P  
  
I've been having a creative writing streak for this story... I've been having mild writers block for my other two ("What the hell?" On ff.net and "The beginning of the End" on fp.com)  
  
Review! Review! Review! :D:D:D  
  
~¤Cyaz¤~ 


	4. Charlotte and the crazy man

Summary: Jenny Hansen has always known she's been different from other children. Something powerful resides within her. She doesn't know who her father is. All her mother remembers is a passionate green-eyed stranger. When a mysterious letter appears for an enchanted school, Jenny wonders if this is the answer to her questions.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter; he belongs to the wonderful J.K. Rowling, Genevieve, Jenny, Angela, the story plot and all other original characters are mine however^_^  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kadi Rilla Wholi: If you want a clue, re-read Jenny's Hogwarts booklist! ^_^ Dean and Lavender are going to get married (Dean's comment: "Hey! I am engaged you know!")  
  
Chuthulupenguin: lol, you know I never thought of that! (And thank you very much)  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Heir of the phoenix  
  
Chapter 3: Charlotte & the "crazy" man  
  
The next day Jenny sprang out of bed, unable to contain her excitement, she danced around her room, singing.  
  
She had stayed up till midnight reading bits and pieces of her schoolbooks. It was all so interesting. Mum had come in around 12:30 to tell her that she REALLY needed to go to bed. So, Jenny reluctantly crawled into bed and fell into a fitful sleep full of dreams.  
  
Jenny quickly took a shower and got dressed, after running a brush through her messy curls, she plopped down on the floor and began reading from where she left off in "Standard book of spells, grade one".  
  
After awhile she got bored of reading and decided to try some of the spells. She went over to her nightstand where her wand was, nestled carefully in its box. Picking it up, she felt its warmth spread quickly up her arm and through her body.  
  
After double-checking the incantation, She placed a hair elastic on the floor and chanted "Wingardium leviosa!" while following the diagram in the book on how wave her wand. Too her immense surprise and pleasure, the hair elastic rose slowly off the floor. Breaking her concentration to yell happily, the hair elastic dropped to the floor. Jenny didn't notice and instead tore downstairs to show mum.  
  
"Mum! Mum! I can do it! I can do magic! Watch!"  
  
Genevieve, who had been in the middle of making pancakes, turned to watch Jenny, who was waving her wand and grinning ear to ear.  
  
"Well, let's see what you can do!" She said, happy and excited to see some more magic.  
  
"Do you have anything light?" Asked Jenny.  
  
"How about this?" Genevieve held up a pen.  
  
Jenny looked dubious.  
  
"I think it might be too heavy, but I'll try..."  
  
Genevieve placed it down on the counter.  
  
Jenny screwed up her face into an expression of great concentration.  
  
"Wingardium Leviosa!" she chanted loudly.  
  
The pen shook a little, and then started rolling towards the edge of the counter, but instead of falling when it reached the edge, it hovered there and rose a bit.  
  
Genevieve stared between the pen and her daughter, who seemed to be using all the force of her will (which was considerable) to keep the pen afloat in the air.  
  
Suddenly Jenny relaxed and the pen dropped to the floor with a clatter.  
  
Genevieve couldn't bring herself to speak. After all these years...  
  
She pulled Jenny into a hug.  
  
"Whatever happens, you'll still be my little girl"  
  
Instead of snorting and saying 'Mum!' Jenny remained silent and nodded.  
  
"I'm going to go outside and try some of this stuff out ok?"  
  
"Alright sweetie, I'll call you in for pancakes when I'm done."  
  
"Pancakes?! Mmm..."  
  
Genevieve laughed at that.  
  
"Now you go outside."  
  
Jenny went upstairs and got the spellbook, she then went out into the backyard. She knew she wasn't in danger of being seen because tall shrubs surrounded their yard and both the families on either side of them were on vacation.  
  
Sitting down in the shade, she began to experiment with different spells. To her surprise, she was able to do most of the ones she tried. There were several difficulty warnings on different pages of the book, but Jenny had no trouble at all with those spells.  
  
Suddenly there was a loud crunch and one of the shrubs shook. Jenny quickly hid her wand behind her and pulled the book into her lap and pretended to be reading.  
  
A familiar face appeared. It was Charlotte, the only girl that Jenny knew that wasn't scared of her. Charlotte was shyer than even Genevieve and had a good reason to be, she was a master at being invisible. Her father was the type to come home from the pub roaring and swearing. Charlotte had once confided in Jenny that her father often slapped her.  
  
But right now, Charlotte wasn't shy; she smiled brightly at the sight of her friend.  
  
"Hey Jenny! How's life?" she said cheerfully.  
  
Jenny regarded Charlotte with surprise.  
  
"What's gotten you all chipper all of a sudden?" Jenny asked.  
  
"Dad's been arrested for drunk driving! I don't have to see him for a week!" she smiled brightly. Charlotte hated her father with an all- consuming passion. Most children would be ashamed if their parents were arrested for something, but Charlotte was looking forward to a break from her father's tyranny.  
  
"Oh..."  
  
"So what are you doing?" asked Charlotte.  
  
Athena chose that moment to come back from hunting. Swooping into the yard she landed on Jenny's shoulder.  
  
Charlotte jumped and regarded the owl in complete amazement.  
  
"You have an OWL?" She demanded.  
  
"Um...yah..." Jenny replied slowly  
  
"That is SO cool" she reached to touch Athena, who regarded her coolly. While stroking her feathers, Charlotte remarked, "My crazy neighbor has an owl...its always coming and going, He also wears strange clothes and I could swear his house is haunted! I remember when he moved in, Mum tried to give him some brownies..."  
  
It suddenly clicked in Jenny's head that Charlotte's so called 'crazy' neighbor was probably a wizard.  
  
"So what were you doing?" Asked Charlotte again, flopping down next to Jenny.  
  
"Oh...reading" said Jenny airily  
  
"Neat, what are you reading?"  
  
"Um..." Jenny debated what to tell her closest friend. Coming to a decision, she held up the heavy book so that Charlotte could read the title.  
  
"Standard book of spells, Grade 1?" said Charlotte neutrally.  
  
"Um...yah..." Jenny shifted uncomfortably.  
  
"Why would you be reading something like that?"  
  
"Umm...I need it for school..."  
  
"School." Charlotte raised an eyebrow.  
  
"You know how everyone thinks I'm weird? How I'm like a freak?"  
  
"Yes" said Charlotte calmly.  
  
"I found out why..." Jenny took a deep breath "I'm a witch"  
  
Charlotte's jaw dropped in surprise; this was obviously not the answer she'd been expecting.  
  
"That IS SO COOL" She exclaimed "Can you like do magic and stuff?"  
  
"Yes, but Char, you mustn't tell ANYONE"  
  
"I won't, I promise, but this is so cool...when did you find out?"  
  
"A few days ago."  
  
"How did you find out???" asked Charlotte, she was bursting with excitement.  
  
"I got a letter inviting me to a boarding school to study magic"  
  
"A boarding school?" Said Charlotte, she looked horrified "But we won't be able to see each other!"  
  
Jenny's previously happy mood vanished. But then a thought struck her.  
  
"We can always mail each other, I've got Athena and I can visit on the holidays!"  
  
Charlotte didn't look as depressed anymore.  
  
"So can you show me some magic?" She asked  
  
"Sure"  
  
Athena choose this moment to rise into the air and disappear into Jenny's window.  
  
"She's really beautiful," remarked Charlotte about Athena.  
  
"Yah...Now watch!" Jenny said mischiviously.  
  
"Ohh, what are you going to do?"  
  
"Watch"  
  
Jenny pulled out her wand and pointed it to a stick lying on the grass a few feet away.  
  
"Wingardium Leviosa!"  
  
Charlotte gasped as the stick rose into the air and floated lazily towards them.  
  
She turned to Jenny, whose face was contorted with extreme concentration. After awhile, she relaxed and the stick dropped to the ground.  
  
"That's amazing! What is that thing?"  
  
"My wand"  
  
"I thought faeries had wands"  
  
Jenny laughed.  
  
"Nope"  
  
"Can I hold it?"  
  
"Alright..." Jenny handed it over slowly.  
  
Charlotte took the wand and examined it carefully. Then she gave it wave.  
  
BANG! The tip of the wand blew out multitudes of ugly green sparks.  
  
Charlotte dropped it quickly.  
  
"Whoa...I don't think it wants me touching it..." She said shakily.  
  
"I figured it might do that...I read somewhere that wands don't take kindly to other people using them."  
  
"Oh"  
  
Jenny thought for a moment.  
  
"Charlotte, you know that neighbor of yours? The one with the owl?"  
  
"Yah? What about him?" asked Charlotte.  
  
"I think he's a wizard."  
  
"What if we went to talk to him?"  
  
"I never thought of that..." Said Jenny "I'll go tell mum that your going to show me something"  
  
Jenny ran inside and returned a few minutes later.  
  
"Let's go!" Jenny put the spellbook in the house and tucked her wand into her pocket. Then she whistled.  
  
Charlotte looked at her strangely.  
  
"What are you doing?"  
  
"Calling Athena"  
  
"Ah..."  
  
Soon Athena came fluttering out the window and landed on the old wooden bench that had been in the backyard as long as Jenny could remember.  
  
"We're going to do some investigating, want to come?" Jenny asked her owl. The owl gave her a look then took off and began to rise into the air and circle.  
  
"She'll follow us" Said Jenny  
  
"How do you know that?" asked Charlotte, surprised.  
  
Jenny paused for a second. An odd look came over her face.  
  
"I honestly don't know how I know...well, anyways, let's go."  
  
It took them 10 minutes to walk to Charlotte's house, the whole way they could see Athena flying overhead.  
  
Charlotte's house was in an entirely different neighborhood, it was a lot more grubby and unkempt. Many people called out friendly greetings to Charlotte. Jenny rarely went to Charlotte's house because of her father.  
  
They walked past Charlotte's small house and stopped in front of an interesting old house. It was shabby and the paint was peeling. The grass was in need of mowing but the flowers in the flowerbeds were very pretty and multicolored.  
  
Jenny began to march down the front walk when she noticed that Charlotte wasn't with her. She turned and saw her friend walking back down the street.  
  
"Where are you going?" Jenny demanded.  
  
"I just remembered that I have some chores to do!" Called out Charlotte  
  
Jenny pondered this for a moment. Then strode after her friend and grabbed Charlotte's arm and began to pull her back towards the house.  
  
"But...but...I have to do chores!"  
  
"You can do them after," Said Jenny firmly, steering Charlotte towards the door, wondering what had come over her friend.  
  
Reaching the front door, she rang the doorbell and jumped at how loud it was.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Todd Lorelei was sitting at his kitchen table, alternately eating breakfast and writing a report for his new boss, the head of the Magical games & Sports department, when the muggle proximity buzzer went off.  
  
'Oh Merlin' he thought to himself 'not another bloody muggle salesman'  
  
Peering out the window, he saw that it wasn't a salesman, but two girls. One had curly chestnut hair and appeared to be dragging the other girl, who had short blondish hair, down the front walk.  
  
He had seen the girl with blonde hair before and knew she was a muggle, but the other girl was new and she did not seem affected by his muggle repelling spells.  
  
He tried to think of any wizarding families that could live nearby but couldn't come up with any names. A muggle who wasn't bothered by the wards he had put in his house?  
  
He watched as they climbed the steps. Then he started towards the door. He winced at the magically amplified doorbell.  
  
'I gotta get rid of that' he thought.  
  
He opened the door.  
  
Standing there was the two girls. The first one was having a hell of a time trying to keep the second one from running off.  
  
"Um...hi" said the first girl, extending one hand and holding onto the second girl with the other.  
  
"I'm Jenny Hansen...this is my friend Charlotte."  
  
The girl named Charlotte smiled weakly and tried to extract herself from the grip that Jenny had on her arm.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
A young man with light brown hair and hazel eyes opened the door. He gave them a confused look as if to ask 'Who the hell are you?'  
  
He was also wearing dark blue robes, similar to what Jenny had seen some people wear in Diagon Alley.  
  
"Um...hi" It was all Jenny could think of saying. She was trying to keep her friend from taking off.  
  
"I'm Jenny Hansen...this is my friend Charlotte" Jenny said.  
  
Athena chose that moment to swoop down and land on Jenny's shoulder.  
  
The man looked from Athena to Jenny to Charlotte. Then comprehension seemed to dawn.  
  
"I'm Todd Lorelei, please come in."  
  
Jenny dragged Charlotte into the house ("But....I...have...chores...to ...do!")  
  
"You're a wizard right?"  
  
Todd looked slightly taken aback.  
  
"Yes, I am, but how do you know?"  
  
"Charlotte told me that she had a crazy neighbor with an owl who always wore weird clothes"  
  
Jenny turned to look at her friend, who was beginning to shake violently.  
  
"Charlotte? Charlotte!" She snapped her fingers in front of her friends face.  
  
She turned to the man named Todd.  
  
"Do you know what's wrong with her?" Jenny asked, shaking Todd out of his reverie.  
  
"Actually, I do, she's having a reaction to the wards around my house"  
  
"Wards?"  
  
"Muggle repelling spells"  
  
"Oh..."  
  
Jenny watched as Todd took out his wand and waved it in Charlotte's direction. Instantly she stopped shaking and blinked.  
  
"Whoa...that was weird" She remarked. "What was that?"  
  
"You were under the effects of a muggle repelling spell" answered Todd  
  
"Muggle?" asked Charlotte  
  
"Someone who isn't magic" answered Jenny  
  
"Oh..."  
  
Todd looked at the girls and then at the mess his house was. An embarrassed grimace was on his face.  
  
"You know, I wasn't really expecting company..." He said.  
  
"We don't mind, we just wanted to see if you were really a wizard, most people think your just crazy."  
  
"I know, I want them to think that" answered Todd. "Why don't we go sit in the living room? I don't any tea or anything."  
  
"It's alright."  
  
He led both girls into a dusty looking room. Many portraits lined the walls and ancient looking shelves were lined with books. They sat on the couch, while he took his favorite armchair.  
  
"Did you go to Hogwarts?" asked Jenny  
  
"Yes I did, I graduated four years ago" Answered Todd  
  
"What house were you in?" She asked  
  
"Ravenclaw."  
  
"Neat, I just bought all my stuff from Diagon Alley yesterday!"  
  
"I remember when I went there for school supplies, I knocked down this bloody great display in Flourish and Blott's, me mum wasn't too pleased." Said Todd reminiscently.  
  
"Were you able to do any spells right after?" asked Jenny  
  
Todd frowned. "Not really, only one or two that me brother taught me and I couldn't do them that well, I'm not exactly what you'd call a skilled wizard. I work for the department for Magical Games and Sports at the ministry..."  
  
"Ministry?"  
  
"The Ministry of Magic."  
  
"Ministry of magic...Oh! Right...Do you play Quiddtich?"  
  
"Play Quidditch? I live for it! I was captain of the Ravenclaw team for two years...I would've played professionally, but I shattered my arm last year, so I can't catch a Quaffle to save my life now... Say, where'd you hear about Quidditch?"  
  
"A boy told me about it, I thought it sounded interesting" said Jenny.  
  
Charlotte cleared her throat.  
  
"Um... what in the world are you guys talking about?" She asked.  
  
"Stuff... and Quidditch."  
  
Charlotte raised an eyebrow.  
  
Todd laughed. "It's the best game in the world"  
  
"You're the second person who's told me that" remarked Jenny  
  
"Well, it is!" cried Todd.  
  
Jenny turned to face Charlotte and rolled her eyes.  
  
"Fanatics! I tell you!" She said dramatically.  
  
Suddenly Todd frowned, and looked at Jenny closer.  
  
"What?" She asked.  
  
"You look familiar" He told her.  
  
"I do?"  
  
"Yah..." He shook his head "But I can't think of why"  
  
Jenny caught sight of the time.  
  
"Oh my god! Mum's going to be furious, I told her we'd only be gone for like half and hour and it's 11!"  
  
"What time did we leave?" asked Charlotte  
  
"Ten"  
  
"Oh, yah... we have to go..."  
  
Todd walked them to the door.  
  
"Thank you for having us." said Jenny politely  
  
"Your welcome, I'm glad to have some company, and Charlotte, that spell won't wear off unless I make it, so don't worry about coming near the place."  
  
"Alright" said Charlotte  
  
With that, the two girls raced off down the street.  
  
Todd watched them go.  
  
Jenny gave him the feeling that he already knew her, though he knew it was impossible that he could. She was also familiar looking.  
  
He didn't know why...  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
And so end's Chapter five.  
  
I know all of you are wondering "What the hell's with Todd and that whole thing?"  
  
Before any of you get ANY ideas, Todd is NOT related to Jenny in ANY way. He also doesn't know either Harry or Genevieve (who are at least 14 years older than he is)  
  
But, He is an extremely important character, Or at least he WILL be an extremely important character. He has a special purpose later in the story. 


	5. The Hogwarts Express

Summary: Jenny Hansen has always known she's been different from other children. Something powerful resides within her. She doesn't know who her father is. All her mother remembers is a passionate green-eyed stranger. When a mysterious letter appears for an enchanted school, Jenny wonders if this is the answer to her questions. 

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter; he belongs to the wonderful J.K. Rowling, Genevieve, Jenny, Angela, the story plot and all other original characters are mine however

Kadi Rilla Wholi: Ahhh...in some ways your right, the normal muggle would blab. But the thing is that Charlotte won't blab, Jenny is her only friend, So Charlotte's loyalty is unquestionable. And if she told anyone, who'd believe her? Not her father (Who has a mindset close to that of Mr. Dursley), and Charlotte doesn't have any other friends, she's too shy.

* * *

Heir of the phoenix

Chapter 4: The Hogwarts Express

Jenny was up long before dawn on September 1st.

Extreme excitement had kept her up most of the night, after reading "Hogwarts, A History" cover to cover; she couldn't wait to walk those stone corridors herself. She bounced around her room, double, triple and quadruple checking that everything was packed right.

"It is all packed you know," said Genevieve from the door of Jenny's bedroom. A hint of amusement tinged her words.

The night before; Genevieve, Charlotte, and Aunt Angela had helped Jenny pack for Hogwarts. The old trunk that Angela had found bulged at the seams with all the stuff they crammed into it. All her Hogwarts supplies and textbooks, muggle clothing, normal books, pictures of everyone.

Genevieve had even presented Jenny with her own clarinet.

"I can't exactly let you take mine," she said jokingly "How would I be able to do concerts?"

Jenny was beyond thrilled.

Now, on the morning of her departure, seeing her mother at her bedroom door made her realize that she would not see Genevieve till Christmas. The longest that Jenny had ever been away from her mum had been a week, and she had been staying with Aunt Angela. So that didn't really count.

But now she was going to be away for _FOUR_ months. She wasn't going to be able to see Genevieve, Charlotte OR Aunt Angela till Christmas. With a silent sob, she ran and hugged Genevieve. Genevieve, slightly startled, bent down and hugged her daughter fiercely. A few tears leaked down her cheek onto Jenny's hair.

Pulling away, she looked into her daughter's eyes. Jenny stared resolutely back into her own. Oddly, Genevieve was reminded of the night in the club, when she had first laid eyes on the man who could only be Jenny's father.

"Jenny, you know you'll always be my little girl" Said Genevieve "And whatever happens, I will always love you, no matter what happens"

With that, she pulled Jenny into another hug.

"Now, lets go have some breakfast."

At precisely 10:30, Jenny marched confidently into King's Cross Station, her trunk on a cart and accompanying her was Genevieve, Charlotte and even Angela.

"Wouldn't miss this for the world!" She had proclaimed.

When they entered the station, they discovered a slight problem. There was no "Platform 9 ¾" to be seen.

"You sure that's what it said on your ticket?" asked Genevieve anxiously. Jenny hastily dug the ticket out of her backpack.

"Yah."

"But there's only platform 9 and platform 10!" remarked Charlotte, leaning against the barrier between the two platforms. Jenny turned to her friend to answer, when she noticed Charlotte had disappeared.

"Charlotte!" she cried in alarm.

Genevieve and Angela's heads snapped around. Their eyes grew big and they began to call out "Charlotte! Charlotte where are you?"

* * *

"But there's only platform 9 and platform 10!" said Charlotte, slumping against the barrier between platforms 9 and 10. To her immense surprise and shock, she kept going. Stumbling, she landed on the hard cement face first.

"Ouch!" she cried.

Wincing and climbing to her feet, she looked up and gasped. A long scarlet steam engine was next to the platform; it read "The Hogwarts Express". Looking up, Charlotte saw that the sign over the platform read _Platform 9 ¾._

"Well," she murmured to herself "You found what we were looking for!"

Dotting the platform were families, trunks, cages with owls in them, children running around. Turning around, she saw the archway that she had fallen through. She stepped back through it.

Coming out of the barrier, she could see Genevieve talking quickly to a ticket master who looked concerned. Jenny and Angela were behind her with scared looks on their faces. Then Jenny saw Charlotte sprinting towards them and tapped Genevieve. Genevieve turned and seeing Charlotte, the concerned expression evaporated.

"I found it! I found it! It's in the barrier!" cried Charlotte as she reached them. The ticket master gave her an odd look, wished them good day and walked away.

"What do you mean it's in the barrier?" demanded Angela.

"Platform 9 ¾! There's a sort of archway!"

Genevieve and Angela exchanged dubious looks while Charlotte seized Jenny's hand and dragged her, cart and all to the place where she had fallen through. Genevieve and Angela followed.

"It's right here! See...?" Charlotte reached towards it, but instead of hitting then solid looking concrete barrier, her hand went through it.

"Bloody hell" whispered Angela.

Charlotte and Jenny stepped through it and disappeared. Genevieve and Angela looked at each other.

"You go first," said Angela.

"Alright" and Genevieve stepped through the barrier. Angela soon followed. They stopped short right behind Jenny and Charlotte, who were looking at the scarlet steam engine with awe.

"Oi Jenny!" a voice called out.

Jenny and Charlotte turned. Half running towards them waving was a redheaded figure.

"Hey Eddie!" Jenny exclaimed as the boy approached them. Charlotte looked confused.

"Char, this is Eddie, I met him Diagon Alley, Eddie, this is my good friend Charlotte"

"Hello" Eddie smiled and stuck out his hand. Charlotte smiled timidly and shook it.

The whistle blew.

"Blimey, we have to get on the train!" cried Eddie. As he took off he called over his shoulder "I'll save a spot for you!"

Jenny nodded.

Turning to Genevieve, Angela and Charlotte, She hugged them.

"You'll write right?" asked Charlotte

"Every week, and maybe more than that!"

"You'd better." Said Angela through the tears streaming down her face. Bending down she helped Jenny put her trunk and Athena's cage on the train. Jenny then went over to Genevieve and hugged her. "I love you mom"

Genevieve embraced her back, "I love you to sweetie, and you should always write!"

With that, Jenny got on the train and went to find Eddie. She found him in a compartment leaning out the window talking to a tall red haired man who looked exactly like him.

"Who's your friend Eddie?" he asked

Eddie jerked and turned around.

"Hey Jenny, this is my dad"

The man grinned. He had Eddie's flaming red hair, a long nose and acopious amount of freckles."Ronald Weasley at your service." He reached through the window and shook Jenny's hand.

"Mum's down the platform talking to some friends" Eddie told Jenny.

"Ok..." then she leaned out the window and waved.

"Mum! Angela! Charlotte! I'm down here!"

The three of them came down the platform towards Mr. Weasley. Introductions started again. Then the whistle blew the second time and the train gave a lurch.

Calls of "Goodbye!" "Don't forget to write!" "See you at Christmas!" and "Be good!" echoed down the platform while Jenny gave Genevieve a quick hug through the window and the train lurched again and began to move. Leaning out the window, Jenny and Eddie called out their goodbyes and waved till the platform was out of sight.

Then they stowed their trunks away and Jenny let Athena out to fly beside the train. Flopping down in their respective seats, Eddie heaved a sigh.

"Blimey, four months till Christmas..."

"Yeah" replied Jenny.

"So where exactly do you live?"

"Near Buckingham Palace, we're living in the house that me mum grew up in. "

"Ah...we live in Surrey"

"Oh."

Suddenly the compartment door slid open. A boy with spiky dark blond hair and blue eyes was standing there with his trunk behind him. He was wearing baggy jeans and a large T-shirt that proclaimed 'It's only funny till someone gets hurt, then it's hilarious!' A pair of headphones was around his neck.

" 'Ello, Is this seat taken? The rest of the train is pretty much full" He said cheerfully. He had a vague American accent.

"No, it's empty" Eddie told him.

The boy shoved his trunk under the seat and turned and faced them, smiling broadly. He looked as if no one could puncture his happy mood.

"I'm Thomas, Thomas White," He said, introducing himself.

"Jenny Hansen" said Jenny

"Eddie Weasley" said Eddie

"Nice to meet y'all"

"Are you American?" blurted Eddie.

The boy named Thomas blinked, puzzled, then he broke in to a grin.

"Me? American? No, but I lived there for a few years, me dad's an ambassador you know."

"Ah" Said Eddie "You have a bit of an accent"

"I do?" Thomas frowned, muttering to himself. Then he smiled again "I guess I do!"

Thomas leaned back against his seat, with his hands behind his head.

"What do your parents do?" he asked

"My mum teaches in a primary school," replied Jenny

"Me dad works for the Ministry, He's an auror, Mum works at Flourish and Blott's and a muggle library"

"Ministry?" said Thomas, puzzled.

"The Ministry of Magic..." said Eddie as if anybody ought to know about it.

"It's the wizard's government," said Jenny, cutting in.

Comprehension dawned.

"Did you read any of your school books?" asked Jenny

Thomas snorted. "No, not really, I read a bit of the spell stuff, but mom made me stop when I accidentally blew up her favorite vase."

"Ah." Said Eddie

"So your muggle-born too?" asked Jenny curiously.

"Muggle?"

"Your parents aren't magic...?"

"Oh! Yeah..." Thomas laughed. "Dad was floored when I got my letter, you see, a few years ago, Dad had an odd encounter with some bloke named Longbottom- "

"Longbottom? He's a friend of me mum and dad's!" exclaimed Eddie. Jenny gave him a strange look. "He works a liaison for the muggle government and Ministry of Magic along with being an auror" explained Eddie. Jenny nodded, comprehending.

"Well anyways, dad walked in on him talking with someone with their head in the fire...scared the bloody hell out of dad...ran straight to the pub before the Longbottom could put a memory charm on him" finished Thomas.

"So how'd he figure it all out?" asked Jenny

"He met the Longbottom guy in Diagon Alley and cleared up a few things over couple of pints..."

The three of them sat in silence for several minutes.

Suddenly there was a loud crash outside, then yelling.

Jenny jumped up to pull open the door of the compartment when it opened and a small, terrified looking boy flew in and slammed it shut behind him. He slumped against the door and sighed with relief and looked up and froze at discovering that this compartment was, yes indeed, occupied.

"What's wrong?" asked Jenny kindly.

"Can't...go...back...out...there..." said the boy, breathing heavily as a malevolent voiced yelled "WHERE IS HE?"

The boy shrank a bit and mumbled something.

"What?"

"I ran into another boy...by accident...and he's really mad...he's got these huge friends...called me a 'mud blood'...dunno what it means..."

For Eddie had risen at this, livid. His wand was out and he looked like he wanted to go out and hex whoever had said that to this poor boy into oblivion. Not that Eddie knew any hexes. Thomas stood up too.

"Don't worry," he told the small boy "we'll help you"

They could hear compartment doors being thrown open and yells of annoyance and protest. Suddenly there own was violently thrown open.

Standing there was a pale boy with white blond hair and cold grey eyes; his pointed face was contorted with fury.

"Aha! The little mud blood who shoved me! Crabbe! Nott! I found him!" Then he seemed to notice the three other people in the compartment, all with wands out.

Two larger boys, lumbered up to the smaller one, both were tall and had an ample amounts of muscle on their frames. The smaller blond one grinned at the occupants of the compartment nastily.

"You have something to say?" Jenny asked him coolly. Thomas had grabbed the back of Eddie's shirt out of precaution. The smaller boy who had tore in there several minutes earlier shrank back against the wall near the window.

"Actually, yes I do. Name's Derek, Derek Malfoy."

Eddie growled. Derek turned his gaze on Eddie. Sizing him up, he remarked.

"You must be a Weasley."

"While your quite obviously a git!" retorted Eddie. "And the name's Eddie."

"I see" Derek looked at the other occupants of the compartment. "And who might you all be?"

"Thomas White," said Thomas, his grip on Eddie's shirt tightening.

"Jenny Hansen" said Jenny, frowning.

Derek smiled nastily. "So, you mean to tell me that this compartment is inhabited by mudbloods and Weasleys?"

Eddie would've throttled Malfoy at that moment if Thomas, who was looking rather riled himself, if not confused, hadn't held him back.

"What do you think of yourself as then?" asked Jenny calmly.

"A Malfoy, one of the oldest and prestigious pureblood families"

"Ah, so you're a pure blood?" said Jenny mockingly, her eyebrows shooting up. "You make me not want to be one you know that...I mean if they're all like you..."

Malfoy faltered for a second, he seemed to have expected her to bow down to his mightiness.

"Now, Goodbye" Jenny told him firmly.

"Oh, so your going to make us leave." Malfoy leaned against the door.

"Actually-yes - terribly sorry about this." With that she raised her wand and shouted "WINGARDIUM LEVIOSA!"

A very startled Malfoy rose a few inches into the air. He tried to move, but as he couldn't touch the floor, he couldn't go anywhere.

Quickly, Jenny levitated him out of the room and slammed the door shut before Malfoy, Nott or Goyle could react. They heard a 'thump' on the other side of the door as Malfoy landed on the floor.

"Alohomora!" said Jenny firmly, tapping the doorknob.

Turning around she met a bunch gaping expressions.

"How did you DO that?" demanded Eddie.

"Do what?" asked Jenny, puzzled.

"All those spells!"

"Can't you?"

Eddie snorted. "I've tried," he said "can't even levitate a feather yet"

A small cough sounded behind him. Jenny, Thomas and Eddie turned to look at the small boy. "I just wanted to say...thanks"

Jenny smiled. "You're welcome, what's your name?"

"Jonathan Golden" he answered shyly, "but you guys can call me Jon"

He brushed a bit of his dark brown hair out of his honey eyes. It made him look even younger, even though he was the same age as they.

"You can sit down if you want." Said Thomas motioning to the seat next to him. (Malfoy had decided not to make a reappearance.)

Jon sat. He looked extremely apprehensive.

"Did you guys want to go to Hogwarts?" he asked. The question startled all of them.

"Yes!" answered Eddie "Who doesn't?"

"I don't" answered Jon.

Eddie gave Jon a look of pure horror and Jon wilted. Even Thomas gave Jon an odd look.

"There were things I didn't want to leave behind, but the pro's about Hogwarts out weighed the con's, so I went" He said.

"I've been waiting all my life to go" said Eddie vehemently.

"I never had any friends at home...everyone thought I was weird...I guess that's because I could do stuff without a wand or even knowing about it..." explained Jenny.

"Oh." Said Jon in a small voice, he looked out the window.

"So, who thinks they can beat me at chess?" challenged Thomas. The rest of the ride passed peacefully, with them chatting and getting to know each other.


	6. The Sorting surprise

Summary: Jenny Hansen has always known she's been different from other children. Something powerful resides within her. She doesn't know who her father is. All her mother remembers is a passionate green-eyed stranger. When a mysterious letter appears for an enchanted school, Jenny wonders if this is the answer to her questions. 

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter; he belongs to the wonderful J.K. Rowling, Genevieve, Jenny, Angela, the story plot and all other original characters are mine however

Kadi Rilla Wholi: I don't really know who's able to get on the platform in the books and who isn't, so I made it so that those who are looking for it or know it exists can get on it. Yes, Jenny will meet some girls, and they'll have an adventure or two (you'll just have to keep to find out what they are) as for the transfiguration thing, you'll see in later chapters.

Chuthulupenguin: What can I say? I'm on a run away creative streak, I have this story sprouting like a bean plant in my head and I need to get it out... It scares me that I can do this, considering this is only like the second story where I've done more than two chapters. And the relationship between Jenny, Thomas, Eddie and Jon won't exactly be like that. You'll figure out how in the next few chapters. : smiles mysteriously: And about the under aged magic thing, I going by this comment of Hermione's in the first book after Ron tries to turn Scabbers yellow ("I've tried a few simple spells just for practice and it's all worked for me")

Lindiel Eryn: I'm a good updater on this story...lol...but not my other ones. And yes I have been following the first book (some of the stuff word for word in the next chapter) I've been trying to have Jenny's experiences resemble, but not mirror Harry's own. And I did read the second chapter of the Island of lost wizards; it's a cool idea having the centaur in there.

* * *

Heir of the phoenix

Chapter 5: The Sorting surprise

Thomas had beaten Eddie at six consecutive games of muggle chess. This hadn't sat too well with Eddie, who was quite good himself...at least he was good against people who weren't Thomas.

"Do you play often?" asked Eddie in strained voice.

"Not really, usually I play with me dad, but he's not usually around."

Jenny had watched all six games with benign interest. Thomas had kicked Eddie's butt with little effort, she could tell, despite having next to no experience with chess. Neither Genevieve or Aunt Angela played.

Jon had watched avidly, giving Eddie pointers here and there. Once the threat of Malfoy had been lifted, he became quite open and cheerful.

"You see, I was supposed to go to a high school that my family's been going to for ages, and all of my friends are going to it too...Me mum also didn't want me to go to Hogwarts, she's very religious you see, and she thinks it's all evil. But then a letter came and said that I had to go a wizard's school whether it be Hogwarts or not, unless she wanted me blown up...something about me not being able to control my powers..."

"My dad's family has been going to Hogwarts for generations." Eddie had replied to this.

"What about your mum?" asked Jon.

"She's muggle born. Met me dad first year, they hated each other, but me dad and his friend saved me mum's life and they were best friends after that."

"What'd they save her from?" Asked Thomas.

"A troll," replied Eddie airily.

"A troll!" Thomas and Jon gasped.

"You mean there are such things as trolls." said Thomas incredulously. Eddie nodded.

"There's a lot of stuff that muggles don't know about; Unicorns, Centaurs, vampires, fairies, dragons...my uncle Charlie works with dragons in Romania... Mermaids, Phoenixes..." Eddie continued to list the assorted magical creatures that existed.

Thomas, Jenny and Jon looked at Eddie in amazement.

"Awesome." Was all the Thomas could say.

Jenny nodded. She had read about a few of the creatures in her school texts. But to Jon, this was all new. Suddenly an announcement came over the speakers (If their was any, Jenny wasn't sure)

"All students should change into their school uniforms, we will be reaching Hogsmead station in ten minutes."

Jenny and the boys glanced nervously at each other.

"Umm..."

"I'll go change in the bathroom," said Jenny after a minute of uncomfortable silence.

Several minutes later, she was striding back to the compartment wearing her Hogwarts uniform. It was a grey skirt, jumper and blouse with a robe over top with the Hogwarts crest. The trim and the tie were black. As she had seen many other older students in the corridor with crimson, yellow, green or blue trim, she assumed they must represent the different houses.

Coming back to the compartment, she found all three boys changed and sitting around. Thomas had his headphones on and was listening to his diskman. Eddie was reading and Jon was looking out window at the now dark countryside.

"What are you listening to?" asked Jenny.

Thomas didn't answer.

Jenny tapped him on the shoulder. He jumped and took off the headphones.

"What are you listening to?"

"Sum41 -It's aburned CD" Thomas answered.

"Ah."

Eddie had looked up at this.

"What's Sum41?" he asked

"It's a band"

"A muggle one?"

"Yeah, wanna listen?"

"Sure."

Thomas handed Eddie the headphones and switched on the music. Eddie's eyes widened at the loudness. Then he seemed to adjust, nodding his head to the beat.

"I've heard something like it on the radio mum has. She still loves muggle music...you should hear the stuff she plays in the car."

"Wizards have cars? I thought you use broomsticks." Remarked Jon.

"We do use broomsticks, just mum needs the car for one of her jobs. She can't just apparate to a muggle library!"

"Good point"

Suddenly the train lurched and began to slowdown.

"Merlin, we're nearly there." Said Eddie.

With a great groan and a lurch, the train stopped. Out the window, they could see the lights of a station.

"We'd better get ready to get off" said Thomas, reaching for his trunk as anannouncement rang through the train. "All students disembark, please leave your trunks, they will be taken to the school separately"

"Never mind that then." Thomas stopped trying to pull his trunk out from underneath the seat.

They followed the crowd in the corridor out onto the dark platform.

"Firs' years!" a voice called "firs' years over here!"

Jenny turned towards the voice and gasped. A giant of a man was standing on the platform holding a lantern. There were several people her age standing near him.

"Hi Hagrid!" called out Eddie, waving.

Hagrid turned and looked at them closely, then smiled.

"Ah, 'ello Eddie."

"How do you know him?" whispered Jon, staring up at the large man and looking throughly intimidated.

"He's a friend of me parents, comes over for tea occasionally"

"Oh"

"C'mon, follow me, firs' years follow me, watch yer step..." He led the way down a small narrow path and they stumbled after him, tripping on roots and rocks. After a little while of slipping and sliding down the muddy path, they rounded a bend.

A magnificent sight met their eyes and there was a chorus of "Ohhhhh's!"

Across a shimmering lake, a vast castle with many glowing windows and tall towers stood majestically on a small mountain.

"Now, no more'n four to a boat!" called the man named Hagrid, pointing to a small fleet of boats that Jenny had just noticed.

Naturally, Jenny, Eddie, Thomas and Jon clambered into the same one.

"Everyone in...? Alrigh' then, FORWARD!"

The little boats sailed smoothly across the lake; everyone was silently staring up at the great castle.

After reaching a small harbor inside the cliff, they were led up some stairs to the great front doors of the school. Hagrid knocked and an elderly woman with black hair heavily streaked with grey opened the door. She was leaning imperceptibly on a cane and had a no nonsense attitude about her.

"Thank you Hagrid for bringing them" She told the large man and led them inside.

"Welcome to Hogwarts, I am Professor McGonagall. The start of term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats, you will be sorted into your houses. Your houses will be like your family at Hogwarts, You will have classes with your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend free time in your houses' common room." She took a deep breath and continued.

"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Each house has its history and virtues, and all have produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your achievements will earn you house points while your misdemeanors will make you lose house points. At the end of each year, the house with the most points will earn the house cup. A great honor, now if you may follow me..."

She turned and flung open the great doors to what Jenny guessed was the great hall. The voices that they'd been hearing suddenly quieted.

Entering the great hall, saw the four house tables, their occupants had become silent at the sight of the first years.

Eddie was in front of her with Thomas and Jon behind her. "Bloody hell!" she heard Thomas saying, sneaking a peek behind her, she could see him staring up at the great hall's enchanted ceiling.

She saw a tall red headed boy waving at Eddie from the Gryffindor table, he looked about thirteen. Eddie waved back.

"Who's that?" she whispered to him.

"My cousin Bill, his dad is my uncle Fred" Eddie answered "My other cousins should be around somewhere- ah, there they are" He pointed to a girl who looked to be around 15 and a smaller boy who looked like he was 12. Both had flaming red hair like Eddie's.

"That's Laura and Arthur" Eddie continued, "Their dad is my uncle Percy."

"Oh."

Professor McGonagall led them up to the raised platform that held the staff table. Sitting in the center of it was an ancient wise looking man. He was talking to a longhaired man with a hooked nose who looked like he was about 50 or 60. On the other side of him was an empty chair, presumably McGonagall's. On a chair next to the hook nosed man sat a pretty witch with blond hair and brown eyes. She was talking to another witch, who was significantly older and dignified.

Next to McGonagall's empty chair was a light haired, brown-eyed man. On the other side of him was the giant of a man, Hagrid and a man with dark hair and green eyes. They were in deep discussion about something, but then the black haired man noticed the first years and gave them a friendly smile. Several of them stared at him in amazement. Jenny could see he had a lightning shaped scar on his forehead.

"That's my dad's best friend, Harry Potter, he's really famous. He defeated the dark lord Voldemort, he's really nice." Eddie whispered to her. Jenny raised an eyebrow.

Eddie waved at him and called out "Hey Harry!" The man with the black hair named Harry Potter smiled broadly and waved back

"Hi Eddie" he said. Several other first years regarded Eddie with a mixture of awe and jealousy.

The chatter that had crept up on the room died away again with a grizzled old man came in carrying a pointed wizard's hat on a stool. It was patched and extremely dirty. Placing it in the middle of the platform, he strode away. Everyone looked at the hat expectantly.

A large rip opened wide at the hat's brim and it burst into song.

_"Oh I may not seem like anymore_

_than a plain old hat to you,_

_but put me on and you will see_

_that I can think too._

_I am the Hogwart's sorting hat_

_And I can see what's on your mind._

_We'll look and find,_

_Which house suits you best._

_Some will belong in Gryffindor,_

_Whose deeds are braver than the rest_

_Some will belong in Ravenclaw,_

_Who's agile mind capped them all,_

_Some will belong in Slytherin,_

_Who's cunning helped him achieve his ends._

_Some will belong in Hufflepuff,_

_Who caring ways and pure heart helped all._

_So, put me on and we will see where you belong,_

_One of the four great houses, each with their own ideals,_

_Is right for you, that is my job, to sort you all._

_For I'm the Hogwarts sorting hat!_

When the hat had finished, everyone cheered and clapped. Professor McGonagall stepped forward and began to read names.

"Abbott, Annie!"

A skinny blond haired girl stepped forward nervously and put the hat on. Almost immediately the hat yelled "RAVENCLAW!"

The table second from the left erupted in cheering and clapping as Annie went to join them.

"Brides, Lauren!" A girl with short black hair and a pale face stumbled out of line and put on the hat, which sank over her head. "HUFFLEPUFF!" roared the hat. The table on the right cheered and clapped.

"Boot, Danny!"

"RAVENCLAW!" shouted the hat.

"Bulstrode, Victoria" became a Slytherin, while "Bushby, Aimee" became a Gryffindor.

Jenny watched as assorted student she'd seen on the platform were sorted into their separate houses. She began to watch the ceiling but was shaken out of it when she heard "Golden, Jonathan!"

Jon walked towards the sorting hat like he was scared it was going to jump up and bite him. It sat on his head for a full minute before shouting "Hufflepuff!"

"Hansen, Jenny!" Jenny froze. Her stomach had chosen that instant to twist itself into knots. Thomas gave her a push.

"Get going!" he whispered

Jenny walked slowly to the sorting hat and put it on. It slid over her eyes and all was quiet for almost a minute, she began to wonder if something had gone wrong when a small voice spoke into her ear. It sounded faintly surprised.

"Well, what do we have here?" It said "Plenty of courage, A brilliant mind...and oh! Talent... slightly stubborn..." suddenly the hat paused. Jenny imagined it frowning. "Elemental?" she heard it whisper. When Jenny was just about to ask what that meant, the Hat commented, "Now where should I put you? Ravenclaw, where your mind will be accepted or Gryffindor, Where your blood runs?" Jenny was getting confused by what the hat was saying. The hat continued to think. "I think you belong in GRYFFINDOR!"

Jenny took off the hat and walked to the Gryffindor table. Her mind was abuzz, what had the hat meant? Where your blood runs? Jenny shook her head, hoping that would make the thoughts go away.

She sat down next to the other Gryffindor first years- Aimee and a boy named Quentin Dawsetta. She turned to watch the other first years get sorted. Just in time to hear

"Malfoy, Derek!" Derek swaggered out of the line and the hat had bairly touched his head when it roared "SLYTHERIN!"

Jenny did a double take when the next name was called.

"Malfoy, Salina!" A girl who looked exactly like Derek stepped out of line, a sheet of light blond hair hung to the middle of her back, her face was expressionless.

She sat with the hat on her head for ten minutes. All of a sudden, the hat shouted "RAVENCLAW!"

There was a stunned silence. No one clapped or cheered. Jenny glanced over at the Ravenclaws and Slytherin's. Almost all were gaping. Even several members of the staff table had trouble regaining their composure.

Salina slowly took off the sorting hat and calmly went to sit at the Ravenclaw table; there was a ghost of a smile on her face.

Professor McGonagall shook her head and continued to read names.

"Moon, Brian!" "Gryffindor!"

Brian came to join their table. There were a quite a few people left.

"Nott" (Slytherin)..."Parks"(Hufflepuff)... "Patil"(Gryffindor)... "Rawlings" (Ravenclaw)... "Rain" (Gryffindor)... "Tyler" (Slytherin)...

"Weasley, Edward!"

Eddie stepped out of the not quite there line and put the hat on his head.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

"White, Thomas!"

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Wood, Arianna!"

"GRYFFINDOR!"

"Young, Stephanie!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Zambini, Richard"

"SLYTHRIN!"

The ancient old wizard stood and spread his arms and smiled.

"Welcome to Hogwarts!" He said "To those who have just joined us and those who have been here before, A reminder that the Forbidden Forest is forbidden, hence it's name and if anyone wishes to view the now seven hundred and sixty itemed list of forbidden items, they can find it on Mr. Filch's office door and the wall surrounding it, now tuck in!" He sat down.

Chatter rose to its normal level.

"Would you reckon a Malfoy being made something other than a Slytherin?" remarked Eddie, "Dad says they're an evil lot."

The boy named Alex Patil nodded vigorously. "So does me mum." He answered.

"Where are you all from?" asked Arianna Wood.

"London" answered Jenny

"Surrey" said Eddie.

"Birmingham" answered Alex

"Manchester" said a girl named Roxanne Rain.

"I'm from London too." Said Brian Moon.

"I'm from-" Aimee began.

She was interrupted by the arrival of the food. Mounds of it. They quickly forgot of home towns and dug in with a enthusiasm that only hungrychildren could muster.

* * *

Harry Potter watched the first years line up in front of the staff table. It always interested to learn about who he was teaching - This was his second year of teaching and he quite liked it.

He gazed at each of the first years, scrutinizing them carefully -some were spitting images of their parents, others he barely recognized, and some he did not know at all.

"Hey Harry!" Harry turned to Eddie Weasley and marveled how much the boy looked like Ron. Same nose, freckles, hair, and height. He had Hermione's warm brown eyes though.

"Hello Eddie." He answered and smiled. Some of the children from wizarding families turned and regarded Eddie with amazement at knowing a living legend. Then he saw Eddie lean over to the girl next to him and whisper in her ear. Harry saw her glance at him skeptically and raise an eyebrow.

The chatter died when Filch brought the sorting hat out. The first year's regarded it with a mixture of curiosity and fear, while the rest of the hall looked at it expectantly.

It began to sing.

_"Oh I may not seem like anymore_

_than a plain old hat to you,_

_but put me on and you will see_

_that I can think too._

_I am the Hogwart's sorting hat_

_And I can see what's on your mind._

_We'll look and find,_

_Which house suits you best._

_Some will belong in Gryffindor,_

_Whose deeds are braver than the rest_

_Some will belong in Ravenclaw,_

_Who's agile mind capped them all,_

_Some will belong in Slytherin,_

_Who's cunning helped him achieve his ends._

_Some will belong in Hufflepuff,_

_Who caring ways and pure heart helped all._

_So, put me on and we will see where you belong,_

_One of the four great houses, each with their own ideals,_

_Is right for you, that is my job, to sort you all._

_For I'm the Hogwarts sorting hat!_

Professor McGonagall...No, Minerva...Harry still had a hard time calling her by her given name even though he had been working with her for years, first with the Order of the Phoenix, then at Hogwarts as a teacher.

Minerva waited for the cheering to die down and began to call names.

"Abott, Annie!"

A girl who looked who looked almost like Hannah stepped out of line and stuck the hat on. Unlike her mother, she was placed in Ravenclaw.

Harry listened as many familiar and unfamiliar names were sorted into assorted houses. He listened as "Golden, Jonathan" was sorted into Hufflepuff; he noticed that Jonathan was one of the boys he had seen Eddie talk to upon entering the hall.

"Hansen, Jenny!" The girl who was standing next to Eddie stiffened, since Harry could only see the backs of the first years, he couldn't see the expression on her face. She stood frozen there till the boy on the other side of her, who was tall- taller than Eddie-and had spiky hair, gave her a slight push and she started to move towards the hat.

Placing the hat on her own head she sat there for about five minutes. Harry saw her frown a few times and was reminded of the time when he had to sit under the sorting hat. Then the rip in the hat brim open wide and bellow "GRYFFINDOR!"

Harry clapped along with the rest of the staff table and the Gryffindor's. For some reason, he felt proud that this particular girl was placed in Gryffindor. Before he could stop and think about it, Minerva called the next name.

"Malfoy, Derek!"

'Oh god...' thought Harry desperately 'Not a mini-Malfoy!'

Indeed there was. A boy who looked exactly like Draco swaggered out of line and put the hat on. Before it was even fully on his head it screamed "SLYTHERIN!"

"Malfoy, Salina!"

Harry watched a girl who also looked like Draco walk calmly to the hat and put it on. Harry groaned slightly, and buried his head in his hands. Who was out to torture him? Draco obviously, by sending two Malfoy clones to school the same year. But the next thing Harry heard nearly made him fall out of chair.

"RAVENCLAW!"

WHAT? Harry's head to snapped up to see the Malfoy girl calmly replacing the hat on the stool and join the Ravenclaw table, there was no clapping what so ever. He could see a Mona Lisa smile playing over her lips. He glanced at Hagrid, who was stunned as he was.

Minerva recovered from her surprise quickly and continued reading names.

"Moon"(Gryffindor)..."Nott" (Slytherin)..."Parks"(Hufflepuff)... "Patil"(Gryffindor)... "Rawlings" (Ravenclaw)... "Rain" (Gryffindor)... "Tyler" (Slytherin)...

Eddie was next and became a Gryffindor. The tall boy who had given Jenny a push out of line became a Ravenclaw, while Arianna, Oliver's daughter, who he had met a few times, became a Gryffindor.

The last few names were read and the people they belonged to were sorted. Dumbledore rose and gave one of his yearly speeches. The plates and platters of food filled themselves and Harry helped himself.

It surprised him how many of the first year's parents he knew...Ron, Hermione, Hannah, Terry, Oliver, Parvati...even the ones he wished he didn't know like Malfoy and Millicent.

He ate his dinner and chatted with Hagrid and Zack (who was Professor Sinistra's dark-hairedreplacement after she had retired sixe years ago. The man was intelligent and funny and Harry quite liked him) After most of the hall had finished eating, Professor Dumbledore dismissed the school to their dormitories.

* * *

My seventh chapter...the longest yet- 14 pages...I'm shocked that I've written this much, let alone this fast...

Review

Next chapter: a late night talk between dorm-mates...


	7. Midnight talks and dreams

Summary: Jenny Hansen has always known she's been different from other children. Something powerful resides within her. She doesn't know who her father is. All her mother remembers is a passionate green-eyed stranger. When a mysterious letter appears for an enchanted school, Jenny wonders if this is the answer to her questions.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter; he belongs to the wonderful J.K. Rowling, Genevieve, Jenny, Angela, the story plot and all other original characters are mine however^_^  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kady Rilla Wholi: Yup, he has two kids, twins actually (fraternal obviously) but twins nonetheless.  
  
Chuthulupenguin: Thanks! I think I'm slowing down :( but not much. More like a chapter every two days instead of a chapter everyday. I can't wait for Jenny's first DADA class either :P  
  
Lindiel Eryn: Rawlings?...OH! Not really... I never thought about it that way because it's JK Rowling... And Salina...well, you'll find out. :D  
  
Kirjava Deamon: Thank you! Well, I kinda like Sum41, but it's not one of my favorite bands...lol, my b/f and his friends are crazy about it though. I like "motivation". And I will write more :P don't worry...  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Heir of the phoenix  
  
Chapter 6: Midnight talks and dreams.  
  
"First years, follow me!" called Laura Weasley, when they had been dismissed  
  
Jenny fell into line behind Aimee. The six other Gryffindor first years followed in a clump.  
  
Laura led them up several flights of steps and down countless corridors, Jenny lost track of where they were. Soon they reached a corridor with large portrait of a very fat woman wearing a pink dress.  
  
"Password?" she said kindly  
  
"Puercos vuelan" answered Laura.  
  
The portrait swung open to reveal a hole in the wall, which they all clambered through. They entered a comfortable looking room with plush couches and armchairs everywhere.  
  
Laura directed the girls up one staircase and the boys up another.  
  
When Jenny and the three other girls reached the door with the word's "first years" on it, they went in to find that all their trunks had been put there already.  
  
The room was quite big with 4 four-poster beds with red hangings  
  
Aimee flopped down on the bed nearest to the door.  
  
"Whuf! I'm tired..." she said closing her eyes.  
  
"Talk about it" said Arianna, dragging her trunk to the bed on one side of the window.  
  
Jenny pulled her trunk over to the bed next to Arianna's on the other side of the window. Roxann took the bed between Aimee's and Arianna's.  
  
"So," said Aimee sitting up "Where you all from? I didn't exactly catch what everyone was saying in the Great hall..."  
  
"Manchester." Said Roxann.  
  
"Edinbourough" said Arianna.  
  
"Central London." Replied Jenny  
  
"Ah," said Aimee "I live in London too, Crouch End"  
  
"Neat"  
  
The girls sat on their assorted beds in silence for a few mintues.  
  
Finally Roxann spoke.  
  
"Does anybody have a brother or sister here?" She asked.  
  
Arianna answered. "Yah, I do; my brother Patrick- he's a git, in third year and he's on the Gryffindor Quidditch team...won't shut up about it at home"  
  
"Ah, my sister's in Ravenclaw, she's in fourth year," answered Roxann.  
  
"I have a little brother," said Aimee.  
  
"I'm an only child," said Jenny, "But sometimes I wish I had a sister, my mum and aunt Angela are fun, but still..."  
  
"Where's your father?" asked Arianna  
  
"Don't know, my mum doesn't even remember him."  
  
"Oh." Said Arianna in a small voice. "My dad plays on Puddlemere United Quidditch team...sometimes I wish I didn't know him, see he loves flying and I...well I..."  
  
"Your what?" asked Roxann, curious.  
  
"I'm...I'm scared of heights..." Arianna said this in barely a whisper. "I hate flying, it scares me so much...there's air everywhere and nothing solid except the ground, but that's like fifty feet below you..."  
  
"That's nothing to be ashamed of, I'm scared of heights too..." said Aimee.  
  
"But you don't know my dad...He's the second best on his team and he loves flying and Quidditch! And Patrick loves it too..."  
  
Arianna sighed and gazed out the window.  
  
"I've never flown before, except in an airplane but that really doesn't count does it?" Aimee said.  
  
"You've been on one?" asked Roxann. "I've seen them fly over my house, but my mother says that broomsticks are much better and I have to say I agree." Roxann snorted and continued, "I once ran into a kite that a muggle boy was flying. I was flying in a field near my house and this great bloody kite came out of nowhere so fast that I thought someone had conjured it and I got tangled in it."  
  
"That must have been interesting, how'd you get out of it?" Jenny asked.  
  
"The hard way, dad had to modify the boy's memory and I was grounded for two months!"  
  
Roxann opened her trunk and began to dig around in it; she pulled out some posters and began to put them up. Jenny had to raise her eyebrows; the band on the majority of the posters was called "The Weird Sisters" while the rest of them where posters of what Jenny gathered as famous Quidditch players. One of the players smiled at her and winked.  
  
The other girls began to dig around in their trunks, none of them were feeling tired anymore.  
  
Soon, their dorm room was plastered with posters and pictures, both wizarding and muggle. They stood back to admire their work. Aimee had tons of muggle pictures of her and her friends next to her bed; above it was a large poster of Justin Timberlake and assorted smaller ones of various male actors and musicians.  
  
"I call it my wall of pretty boys." She proclaimed.  
  
"Do muggle pictures ever move?" asked Arianna, admiring the magazine clipping of Shane West.  
  
"Nope" answered Jenny. Jenny had placed the framed pictures of Genevieve, Angela and Charlotte on the nightstand. On the wall, she had put a few animal posters and drawings of hers.  
  
Arianna had pictures of her family and various Quidditch players all over the wall near her bed. She also had a "Weird sister's" poster.  
  
Aimee swore. She was leaning over her trunk fiddling with something.  
  
"What's wrong?" Arianna, Roxann and Jenny asked at the same time.  
  
"My CD player won't work!" cried Aimee. Arianna and Roxann exchanged puzzled looks.  
  
Jenny remembered something. Visualizing a page of Hogwarts, a History, she said; "Electronics won't work at Hogwarts, they just go haywire- there's too much magic"  
  
"Ohhh..." Aimee slumped. "I wanted to listen to some music."  
  
"We'll figure something out." Assured Jenny.  
  
Aimee slid to the floor and sat with her legs crossed. Jenny sat down next to her. Arianna and Roxann sat across from them.  
  
"So, now what?" asked Roxann.  
  
"Maybe we should go to bed." Suggested Aimee. "I'm bagged"  
  
"Bagged?"  
  
"Tired"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Harry sighed and rubbed his eyes.  
  
He glanced at his watch. 12:28 am.  
  
No wonder he was so tired. He had been sitting in his office going over class lists and curriculums. And tomorrow was the first day of classes. He began to pile the assorted stacks of parchment neatly around his desk.  
  
Then he looked up. Instead of the familiar iron wrought window looking out into the dark night, there was a different one with a window seat... it was like a ghostly image. He could still see his office window, but there was a different one, looking out onto a cityscape. Sitting on window seat was a woman. She looked like a ghost, only instead of seeing pearly white...she just looked faded. Harry had feeling that she was real.  
  
She was looking out the window. Harry could see her profile and her long curly brown hair. Suddenly she turned towards him. Her dark blue eyes widened slightly. She was so familiar, it scared him. He was just about to say something when-  
  
CRASH!  
  
Harry jerked awake. He had been sleeping with his head on the desk. Shaking his head he looked up at his window. It looked normal, no sign of the faded image. Looking down, he realized that his arm sliding off the desk had caused his inkwell to fall to the ground and shatter.  
  
Had it all been a dream?  
  
She had seemed so real... There and not there. She had seen him...he was sure of it.  
  
Shaking his head, he went off to bed.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Genevieve's eyes snapped open.  
  
She looked around and realized that she was still sitting on Jenny's window seat. She had been sitting there thinking and must have drifted off.  
  
She looked back towards Jenny's bed. A few seconds ago she had seen something else. A large oak desk had been there, behind it, staring at her, had been a man. He had messy black hair that hung over his forehead, partially hiding a lightning shaped scar. Stacks of the same type of parchment that Jenny's letter had been written on surrounded him. Behind him were several bookshelves.  
  
His green eyes had gazed in to hers. So familiar...  
  
Then it hit her like an electric shock. She ran to her room and grabbed a picture of Jenny from her nightstand. Switching the light on, she compared Jenny's picture to the picture in her mind's eye. Almost an exact match.  
  
Jenny's eyes, his eyes. Jenny's nose, his nose. Jenny's messy hair, his messy hair. Even the shapes of their faces were the same.  
  
Genevieve reveled this. All she had remembered before were his green eyes- nothing else.  
  
The man in her dream was Jenny's father.  
  
Genevieve paused for a second as something new came to mind. What he was wearing. He had been wearing black pants and grey shirt with a loosened tie around his neck, but what had struck her was the cloak he was wearing over them, it was black, with a small crest on it. The crest was familiar, Genevieve wracked her brain; it was just like...  
  
Just like Jenny's Hogwarts one...  
  
Genevieve gasped and nearly dropped the picture.  
  
Could it be? Jenny's powers...?  
  
Genevieve shook her head.  
  
'No...' Genevieve thought 'I'm imagining things...'  
  
A nagging voice in the back of her head told her otherwise. 'You remembered him didn't you?' it told her  
  
Genevieve didn't know what to think.  
  
Was it a random dream? Or something else?  
  
Genevieve didn't know.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
My sixth chapter... yes it is shorter than the others, but I hope the content makes up for it.  
  
I'm not really sure that it will though... I was held in one spot for a while because of mild writer's block, then two friends and a story I was reading gave me an idea that I merged with another idea that I was already tossing around. (Thanks James! Thanks Alec! You guys saved this chapter :D)  
  
~¤Cyaz¤~ 


	8. The first day

Summary: Jenny Hansen has always known she's been different from other children. Something powerful resides within her. She doesn't know who her father is. All her mother remembers is a passionate green-eyed stranger. When a mysterious letter appears for an enchanted school, Jenny wonders if this is the answer to her questions.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter; he belongs to the wonderful J.K. Rowling, Genevieve, Jenny, Angela, the story plot and all other original characters are mine however^_^  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Lindiel Eryn: It'll take them awhile...:P  
  
Kadi Rilla Wholi: Genevieve has suspicions; Harry has no idea who she is, other than he recognizes her. And sure, I'd love a few ideas, some of the ones you gave me, I was thinking of some like it. (Like the invisibility cloak one) but I won't tell you right now because I don't want to spoil the story... And I'm not sure about when this story will end, I might do just Jenny's first year in this story and a sequel with Jenny's 7th year, I might do the whole school thing in one story.  
  
Kirjava Deamon: As I have said a few times, it'll take awhile and both parties will be VERY suspicious. (And Insanity will have so fun too) :P  
  
mjk306: Thanks!  
  
JM Jazzman: thanks...yah, I noticed the error's after I had posted it but I was too lazy to go back and fix them...and usually by the time I found them, I would be well into writing the next chapter...  
  
Erikalya Arvanesse: yup...pretty much. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Heir of the phoenix  
  
Chapter 7: The first day.  
  
Jenny woke early the next morning.  
  
Despite how late she had stayed up, she did not feel tired. In fact she felt quite awake.  
  
She sat up and looked around the room.  
  
Lying still fast asleep in the next bed was Arianna. On the other bed was Roxann, sleeping with her mouth open. On the floor next to the door (a good three feet from her bed) was Aimee- curled up in a ball and snoring, with all the sheets and the quilt around her.  
  
Stifling a laugh, Jenny climbed out of bed and got dressed. Going to her trunk, she pulled out her clarinet case and opened it. After assembling the clarinet, she put in her mouth and began to play.  
  
Arianna was the first to stir.  
  
"Go away mum..." she mumbled. Jenny grinned and began to play a little louder.  
  
Roxann's eyes popped open and she sat up. Arianna reluctantly opened her eyes too.  
  
"What's that?" She asked. Jenny continued to play and Aimee continued to snore.  
  
Jenny lowered the instrument.  
  
"It's a clarinet." She explained.  
  
"It sounds nice, I've never heard one before- how long have you been playing?" Asked Roxann  
  
"As long as I can remember, my mum is a professional musician after her teaching job."  
  
"Cool."  
  
The three of them turned to regard Aimee sleeping on the floor.  
  
"Try your clarinet again."  
  
Jenny walked over to Aimee and played as loudly as she could. Aimee snored on.  
  
"You sure she isn't dead?" asked Roxann jokingly.  
  
"Well, she's snoring, so I think she's very much alive," said Arianna, walking over to Aimee and shaking her slightly. Aimee didn't stir.  
  
"You'd think she was under the draught of the living death!" cried Arianna.  
  
Jenny laughed. Then inspiration struck, running to get her spellbook, she looked up incantation for the tickling charm. Grinning like a maniac she put down the book, and walked back over to where Roxann and Arianna were trying to rouse Aimee.  
  
"Stand back!" said Jenny, still grinning.  
  
"What are you going to do?" asked Roxann  
  
"Watch," said Jenny "Titillationis inrisionis!" (A/N: "Titillationis" is Latin for "tickling" :P )  
  
Aimee's eyes snapped open and she began to laugh uncontrollably. Jenny quickly did the counter-charm.  
  
Aimee sat up and looked at them wildly.  
  
"What...was...that?" she demanded.  
  
"The tickling charm" answered Jenny "We couldn't wake you up, 'heavy sleeper' is probably an understatement- we should nick name you 'sleeping beauty'!"  
  
Aimee laughed at this. "My mum and dad already call me that." She said.  
  
Arianna and Roxann, however, were looking at Jenny in surprise.  
  
"What?" asked Jenny.  
  
"You can already do spells?" asked Arianna.  
  
"Yah, I can do most of them in our spellbook...why? You can't?"  
  
Arianna shook her head.  
  
Roxann, on the other hand, smiled. "You must be really talented to be able to do so much already- Will you help me with my homework when we get some?"  
  
Jenny smiled. She wasn't used to people other than her mum, Angela or Charlotte complimenting her.  
  
"Sure."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Jenny met Eddie in the common room a few mintues later to go down to breakfast. Unfortunately, neither of them could remember the way they had come up from the great hall.  
  
"Ready to get lost?" She asked him cheerfully. Eddie grinned at this.  
  
"Sure" he answered, laughing.  
  
The two made their way out of the portrait hole and down the corridor. Reaching a flight of stairs, they went down it. Reaching a landing they looked around. Finding a secret passageway through a tapestry, they followed that. Reaching another staircase that went up, they stopped.  
  
"Um..." Said Eddie.  
  
Jenny began to poke around again. Nothing that she could find, so they turned they're way back towards the first landing.  
  
A half hour later they found the way to the great hall. Coming in just as the post arrived, they sat down and helped themselves to pancakes and various other foodstuffs.  
  
"Here's your timetables." Said Arianna, who had some how gotten to the great hall first.  
  
Jenny looked at her schedule; next to the course was the name of the house they were attending the course with. Some of the courses, The Gryffindor's had alone.  
  
Their first class would be double charms with the Ravenclaws.  
  
Jenny smiled. Something she knew she was good at.  
  
When breakfast was done, Jenny and Eddie had the sense to ask directions from an elder Gryffindor.  
  
Walking up the grand staircase, they took a left and walked down the corridor. Taking another left, the walked up a narrow staircase. Reaching a large hallway, they took a right. Passing several portraits, they found the tapestry that the fifth year had told them about and went up the staircase behind it. Halfway up it, however, Jenny sank into a stair.  
  
"AH!" she yelped, starting to sink.  
  
Eddie sprang onto the stair above her and grabbed her under the arms and pulled her out. Standing on the upper stair, they regarded the innocent looking step.  
  
"Gotta remember to jump that one," said Jenny wryly.  
  
"Yah," said Eddie "Bill told me about the trick step, he just never said where it was."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
They reached the charms classroom a little later after a few wrong turns.  
  
When they got there, they realized that several people were already in line for it. Roxann and Aimee were there chatting animatedly, so was Quentin and Alex. Several Ravenclaws were there also; Jenny didn't know many of their names though.  
  
"Hey Jens! Eddie!" called Thomas, waving. They joined him in line. Thomas smiled broadly.  
  
"How much did you get lost this morning?" he asked cheerfully.  
  
"Quite a bit when we were trying to find the great hall, we got directions though from the great hall though." Said Eddie.  
  
"I got stuck," said Jenny, grimacing.  
  
"Oh? How?" asked Thomas, concerned.  
  
"Trick step, I just sank- Eddie had to haul me out" Jenny recounted.  
  
"Oh...we'd better watch out for those then." Thomas said, grimacing "I wonder if you can totally disappear into one of those things..."  
  
The bell rang and they filed into the classroom.  
  
Sitting at the desk was the pretty woman with brown eyes that Jenny had seen at the staff table the night before.  
  
"Please take your seats." She said kindly.  
  
Jenny took a seat between Thomas and Eddie. Looking around, she took account of where others were sitting. Arianna, Roxann and Aimee were sitting together across the room, The Malfoy girl- Salina, who had caused such a stir, sat in the back reading. Other groups of students sat in clumps.  
  
A few more students scurried into the room and sat down.  
  
Standing up the witch strode over to the chalkboard and faced the class.  
  
"Good Morning class, I am Professor Mariotte, I have been teaching charms at Hogwarts for about four years now and I believe we will have a very interesting and rewarding year- if you pay attention."  
  
She looked at each student in turn. Some smiled back, some squirmed.  
  
"Now, we shall begin, who here knows or can perform some charms already?"  
  
Jenny raised her hand, as did a short Ravenclaw boy and Salina.  
  
"Ah, Excellent!"  
  
Professor Mariotte was extremely bubbly, but an excellent teacher. She showed them the basics, explaining that they were quite boring but she was trying to make them interesting. She succeeded and it was quite an interesting class.  
  
After class, she called Jenny and Salina over to her desk.  
  
"I see that you two are quite advanced for first years, I know in Muggle schools, you would be skipped ahead a year, but at Hogwarts it doesn't quite work like that. If you feel like you need some more challenging work, I will assign bonus projects alright?"  
  
"Okay" said Jenny happily, Salina nodded, smiling slightly.  
  
"What was that all about?" asked Eddie a few minutes later when Jenny had joined him outside the classroom.  
  
"Professor Mariott wanted to give me and Salina bonus projects because were advanced."  
  
"Salina...You don't mean the Malfoy girl?" Asked Eddie disgustedly as they began to walk toward their History of Magic class.  
  
"Yes, I honestly don't know why you care Eddie, I remember you saying the Malfoy's were an evil lot, then she got sorted into Ravenclaw, NOT Slytherin...maybe some people change, maybe some people don't follow their families traditions, have you ever thought about that Eddie?" Jenny demanded irately.  
  
Eddie shrugged, his ears turning pink. He seemed to have shrunk from being five inches taller than Jenny to five inches shorter than her- and she had bairly raised her voice.  
  
"Hey! If it isn't Mudblood and Weasel from the train?" said a drawling voice.  
  
Jenny and Eddie whirled.  
  
Standing several paces behind them was Derek Malfoy. He was with four other boys; two of them were Crabbe and Goyle, the two lumps they had also seen on the train, while the other two were other first years named Nott and Tyler that they had seen being sorted into Slytherin.  
  
"You were saying?" whispered Eddie. Jenny ignored him.  
  
"Oh...so now Malfoy needs others to help him feel protected?" she called out.  
  
Derek's cheeks darkened slightly.  
  
"Don't you dare insult me mudblood, you'll face the consequences!" He raved.  
  
"What consequences?" taunted Jenny "If it means you'll hate me, I'll be glad to face them, because I doubt you know anything to do with spells considering how thick you are!"  
  
She struck a nerve in Derek. With a growl he lunged at her.  
  
Jenny didn't even have time to get her wand out. Horrified she watched Derek barrel towards her down the corridor.  
  
'Oh shit!' she thought desperately to herself 'look what you've gotten yourself into!'  
  
Jenny definitely did not want this git anywhere near her. With all her will, she concentrated subconsciously on keeping him away.  
  
All of a sudden, a wind picked up in the corridor.  
  
Malfoy was caught in mid leap and was blown backwards into his cronies.  
  
The wind continued to push them away. With yells of horror, the Slytherin boys turned tail and ran.  
  
Jenny shook her head; only she and Eddie hadn't been affected by the mysterious wind.  
  
"What just happened?" asked Eddie in a semi awed yet terrified voice.  
  
"I have no idea..."Said Jenny shakily, an odd feeling had come over her. A feeling of power and extreme control.  
  
"I've been waiting for the day when someone would bring my brother down a few notches!" called a voice.  
  
Jenny turned.  
  
Stepping out from behind a statue was Salina, she was grinning happily and looked as though her dreams had been answered. It was a major contrast to the stoic façade that she had earlier.  
  
"Why can't you?" Asked Jenny.  
  
Salina grimaced.  
  
"Father" She said, sounding oddly calm "He favors Derek because he's a boy, Derek's just an idiot who couldn't tell a wand from a stick!"  
  
"And you aren't?" demanded Eddie, before he could stop himself.  
  
Salina flicked her wand in Eddie's direction.  
  
"ACK!" Eddie yelled as his legs became wobbly and jelly-like.  
  
Salina smiled slightly.  
  
"You were saying?" she said as she removed the curse. Eddie looked between Jenny and Salina and sighed. He wasn't going to win.  
  
"Okay, now lets get to Herbology before we're late!" With that, Jenny grabbed Eddie's arm and hauled him off too the greenhouses.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
The rest of week passed, Jenny excelled in all her classes. Eddie stayed afloat due to Jenny's help and began to grow good at transfiguration, a talent that he must have got from Hermione. Charms was her best class though, and her favorite.  
  
Salina was their resident bookworm and Defense against dark arts expert, considering she was the daughter of a former death eater.  
  
Thomas was brilliant at potions, A talent that Snape did not like, considering that Thomas was not in his own house, but Thomas had somehow won the grudging respect of Snape in their second week when he prevented a neighboring cauldron from exploding and saved the class from being covered in forgetfulness potion.  
  
Jon proved himself to be quite the natural at transfiguration too. He was no coward either.  
  
Jenny, Eddie, Salina, Thomas and Jon. They were inseparable, despite being in different houses. It had taken Eddie awhile to get over his prejudices against Malfoy's but when he had, you could see him and Salina chatting animatedly in the corridors. A lot of students were surprised at this, as most of them had heard from their parents the intense hatred that had been mutual for the two wizarding families.  
  
But those who met Salina realized that she was nothing like her parents or brother. She was smart and kind. She was also very tough, and almost as powerful as Jenny when it came to magic. Her life had not been easy and she finally felt accepted for who she was at Hogwarts.  
  
Her father had favored and spoiled Derek rotten and ignored her. Her mother was never around anyways and hadn't wanted a daughter. Often Salina would be left to her own devices and go to the library and read her parent's old school books. She avoided everything to do with dark magic, anything to do with her parents.  
  
Before getting on the train, she had told her father stoutly that she would never let herself be put in Slytherin. Draco Malfoy had been angered by that statement, but before he could even slap her, she was gone.  
  
~*~  
  
Harry watched Eddie and his friends from a distance. He was reminded of himself, Ron and Hermione. He was surprised the day he saw Eddie, Salina Malfoy, Jenny and the boy with spiky hair talking in the corridor outside of the charms classroom. A Weasley talking to a Malfoy? On good terms?  
  
Jenny Hansen however, gave him an odd feeling whenever he saw her. She was disturbingly familiar, but he could not place her face. It was like looking in a mirror but the reflection wasn't quite right, only Harry didn't realize it in those terms.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
My 9th chapter (YAY!!!!!!) Thanks to you ALL!!!!  
  
Review Review Review!!!! 


	9. Flying without wings

MAJOR AUTHORS NOTE: The computer that I write my stories on is currantly internet-less, I have chapters 11-15 written and as soon as I get the internet,  
  
I will post them. Thankyou to all my readers who are still waiting for the rest of Jenny's adventures.   
  
Summary: Jenny Hansen has always known she's been different from other children. Something powerful resides within her. She doesn't know who her father is. All her mother remembers is a passionate green-eyed stranger. When a mysterious letter appears for an enchanted school, Jenny wonders if this is the answer to her questions…   
  
  
  
  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter; he belongs to the wonderful J.K. Rowling,   
  
Genevieve, Jenny, Angela, the story plot and all other original characters are mine however^_^  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
Erikalya Arvanesse: yup………A Malfoy, a Weasley and a Potter. But the Malfoy isn't your ordinary Malfoy is it?  
  
  
  
Mjk306: I'll get right on it, I love writing this story………You know the idea that I have right now for where I want this story to go is totally different from my original one.  
  
  
  
Kadi Rilla Wholi: She has had DADA classes, (Or at least in this chapter she has, because she's been at Hogwarts for two weeks) but you will be able to see what a DADA class will be like because I just got a juicy idea for one (heeheehee)  
  
  
  
Alec: Yes, if you could find some:P . Thanks. (BTW, get Lauren to read this; I'd like to hear what she thinks of it)   
  
  
  
Chuthulupenguin: How am I teasing you?? ::is confused::   
  
  
  
Lindiel Eryn: Yay! I've been waiting for someone to ask about that! The wind is something special……… And yes, Jenny will be more powerful than Harry………  
  
  
  
JM Jazzman: Thanks :D:D   
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Heir of the Phoenix   
  
  
  
Chapter 8: Flying without wings………  
  
  
  
Half way through the second week of term, a sign appeared on the Gryffindor common room notice board.  
  
  
  
QUIDDITCH TEAM TRYOUTS  
  
  
  
WEDNESDAY @ 3:30 pm  
  
  
  
  
  
"Hey, would you look at that!" said Eddie excitedly "Quidditch tryouts!"   
  
  
  
Jenny glanced up from her transfiguration homework.   
  
  
  
"I thought first years weren't allowed their own brooms." She said quietly, smiling slightly.  
  
  
  
"They aren't, but we can go watch." Eddie was still excited. His greatest love was Quidditch.   
  
  
  
Jenny, Thomas and Jon often listened to Salina and Eddie argue about Quidditch, the only thing they had never agreed on.  
  
  
  
Eddie supported the Chudley Cannon's, who in the last four years apparently had made a comeback.  
  
  
  
Salina however, supported the Montrose Magpies.  
  
  
  
Jenny, Thomas and Jon- growing up muggle- had never been exposed to Quidditch. Salina followed it while Eddie………lived for it. Jenny had quickly learned about the sport while listening to Eddie rant.  
  
  
  
Jon was itching to see a game played while Thomas was only vaguely interested by it, By Thomas' opinion, football and hockey were MUCH better sports to watch.   
  
  
  
Thomas had played football before coming to Hogwarts and sometimes during free time, he could be seen dribbling a football and doing fancy tricks out under a tree near the lake.  
  
  
  
He and Jenny sometimes played pass and one day taught Salina to play. She proved to be quite good at it.   
  
  
  
Eddie, on the other hand, could not see what was so fun about kicking a ball around on the ground and not even being allowed to fly.   
  
  
  
A few days earlier, when Jenny, Thomas, Jon and Salina had been kicking the ball around (Eddie hadn't been there because he had to do extra homework for Professor Snape) when two third year Gryffindor girls, a second year Hufflepuff and a fourth year Ravenclaw asked if they could play. All were from muggle families and a four-on-four football match was organized.  
  
  
  
With Jenny, Salina, the second year Hufflepuff (who's name was Erik) and Thomas on one team and Jon, the two other Gryffindors, Julie and Margaret and the fourth year Ravenclaw (Colin) on the other, they played for an hour straight, attracting a small crowd of curious non-muggleborns and a cheering section of those who were.  
  
  
  
Recalling it, Jenny smiled.  
  
  
  
Eddie gave her a bemused look.   
  
  
  
"So are you going to come with me to watch the tryouts or not?" asked Eddie.  
  
  
  
"Sure, I'll come"  
  
  
  
Eddie looked wistfully at the sign.  
  
  
  
"I wish I could try out,………" he said.  
  
  
  
"When you do next year, I'll be sure to cheer you on." Said Jenny calmly and bent over her homework again.  
  
  
  
Eddie reluctantly sat down to do some more of his homework.   
  
  
  
Jenny could see him occasionally glancing over at the notice board. After awhile Eddie began to doodle Quidditch strategy on a spare piece of parchment.   
  
  
  
Jenny smiled to herself, Eddie iwas/i obsessed.  
  
  
  
"But not as much as my dad!" Arianna had proclaimed earlier.  
  
  
  
Returning to her transfiguration homework, she tried to remember the incantation for color switching spells. She could do all the spells without problem, but keeping all the incantations straight was another matter all together. That was some thing Salina or Jon was good at.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
On Wednesday after classes, Eddie all but dragged Jenny to the Quidditch pitch.  
  
  
  
Quite a few people had shown up too try out, but there was only one other person who had shown up to watch from the sidelines- Professor Potter.  
  
  
  
Jenny could see the captain of the team trying to bring order too the large group of people trying out. He was a tall burly 6th year with massive arms and curly brown hair. Jenny figured he was probably a beater. Jenny could also see Arianna's older brother Patrick trying to get them to line up.  
  
  
  
"What are they trying out for again?" Asked Jenny.   
  
  
  
"They need a seeker and two chasers." Answered Eddie automatically.  
  
  
  
"Oh"  
  
  
  
They watched as the captain organized them all into a mock game, rotating in the people who were trying out. Professor Potter was making notes on a clipboard as the captain gave him hand signals.  
  
  
  
They watched as assorted students proved them selves either to be good flyers or better landlubbers. One girl had a panic attack when she realized how high up in the air Quidditch was played.  
  
  
  
Eddie had a running commentary going to himself that Jenny only half-listened too.   
  
  
  
"Ohh………there's a good catch………no………now he's sure to be picked………and her………but definitely not him………OH AWSOME SAVE!"  
  
  
  
"Um………Eddie, that was one of the people who's already on the team" Jenny pointed out.  
  
  
  
"What? Oh………hehehe………" Eddie's ears turned pink.  
  
  
  
After about two hours, which was how long it took too rotate everybody through. The captain called everyone too the ground and sent them off. Jenny began to leave when Eddie grabbed her arm and just about bounded over too Patrick.  
  
  
  
"Can I try your broom?" asked Eddie.  
  
  
  
Jenny looked at Eddie horrified for a second, why would he ask someone he didn't know???  
  
  
  
Patrick however smiled and handed it over. "Sure Ed."  
  
  
  
Jenny relaxed slightly. They knew each other. Vaguely, she remembered Eddie telling her that their fathers knew each other.  
  
  
  
With that, Eddie pretty much grabbed the broom like a starving man, jumped on and sped off around the pitch leaving Jenny and Patrick standing there.  
  
  
  
"Well, he's more desperate than I thought………" said Patrick with a laugh.  
  
  
  
"Desperate?"   
  
  
  
"Eddie is the only person I know who is as obsessive about Quidditch as my father is"  
  
  
  
"Don't forget about me." Said a voice behind them.  
  
  
  
Jenny and Patrick turned.   
  
  
  
Standing there was Professor Potter; he had an amused grin on his face.   
  
  
  
"Oh yes!" said Patrick dramatically "We can't forget Harry, our other resident Quidditch obsessee!"  
  
  
  
"That's me." Confirmed Professor Potter.  
  
  
  
They turned back to watch Eddie tearing around the outer edge of the pitch. Jenny thought he looked slightly reckless.   
  
  
  
She gasped when he began to dive towards the ground, but unable to pull up in time, he hit the ground and rolled.  
  
  
  
Professor Potter and Patrick hurried over to help Eddie to his feet.  
  
  
  
"That was a better landing than last time you know Eddie," said Professor Potter.  
  
  
  
"Do I even want to know?" asked Jenny.  
  
  
  
"Sure," said Eddie airily. "Made a hole five feet deep."  
  
  
  
Jenny laughed despite herself.  
  
  
  
Patrick picked up his broom and dusted it off.  
  
  
  
"Hey Hansen, You want to try?" he asked her.  
  
  
  
Jenny looked at the broom like it would bite her.  
  
  
  
"I've never been on one before………" She said slowly.  
  
  
  
"It's easy, just get on, kick off and it'll listen to you"   
  
  
  
"Okay………"  
  
  
  
Jenny clambered onto the broom.   
  
  
  
Kicking off hard, she soared into the air. Wind rushed through her hair and by her ears.  
  
  
  
It was like rising into another world, the broom was an extension of her. Unlike everything else, which she had to work at and remember, even though she could do it, this was like………instinct. Pure instinct.  
  
  
  
She was aware of everything on the pitch, every little breeze told her something new. A wind caressed her hair and robes.   
  
  
  
Redirecting it, she soared across the pitch. It was more like she was flying with the wind and air rather than a broom.   
  
  
  
Back and forth she went, suddenly changing course and height as the wind changed. Suddenly rising upwards on a thermal, she didn't notice the small crowd watching her.  
  
  
  
"Oy! JENNY!"  
  
  
  
A voice pierced her new conscience. Looking down she realized that it was Eddie calling her. Jenny turned the broom towards him and dove.   
  
  
  
Stepping lightly off the broom less than a second later, she was met with a group of gaping faces. Eddie, Professor Potter, Patrick and the rest of the Gryffindor Quidditch team.  
  
  
  
"Um………are you guys alright?" Asked Jenny.   
  
  
  
"Your AMAZING!" Patrick managed to get out.  
  
  
  
"I am? But I only went around the field a few times."  
  
  
  
"You got more response out of that broom in five minutes than I have in the four years I've had it!"  
  
  
  
"Oh………" Jenny stared at the awed people surrounding her.  
  
  
  
"Why didn't you try out if you could do that?" demanded the Gryffindor captain.  
  
  
  
"I'm in first year! I don't even have a broom, I've never been one before!"  
  
  
  
The Gryffindor team exchanged glances and grinned happily.   
  
  
  
Stepping forward, Captain held out his hand to Jenny, which she shook, feeling a little confused.  
  
  
  
"I'm captain Jarod Tucker of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, and you are our new seeker" He said formally.  
  
  
  
"WHAT?"   
  
  
  
"Your our new seeker!" said Patrick "You're the best flyer we've seen."  
  
  
  
"I am?" asked Jenny  
  
  
  
"You are"  
  
  
  
"I'd wager," said Professor Potter, who was grinning also, "that your better than even I am."  
  
  
  
Jenny and Eddie stared at him. The rest of the team's grins grew in size.   
  
  
  
Eddie turned to Jenny, "You'd be the first first year player since………since, well him!" He pointed to Professor Potter.  
  
  
  
Harry laughed.   
  
  
  
"I can still remember Professor McGonagall's face." He said fondly of the memory.  
  
  
  
"Speaking of Professor McGonagall, we have to talk to her about getting you your own broom." Said Tucker.  
  
  
  
Jenny was still trying to process what was happening. She was going to be a seeker? As surprising the offer was………well, Jenny got the feeling that it wasn't an offer, something told her that if she refused, she might be hexed, but other than that- she was excited and flattered.  
  
  
  
"Well," Tucker said, "Let's try you out." He picked up his broom and hopped on.  
  
  
  
"Professor? People?" He said looking at the group.  
  
  
  
"Oh, right" The team jumped onto their brooms and soared into the air. Professor Potter waved his wand and a few seconds later a broom came flying towards them from the direction of the castle.   
  
  
  
He climbed on also.  
  
  
  
Patrick motioned for Jenny to get on his broom and get up there. When she had rose to the height of the other players, He backed up and grabbed a spare broom from the broom shed. Eddie, not wanting to be the only one left on the ground, seized a school broom and climbed on.   
  
  
  
"Accio golf balls!" cried Tucker, waving his wand in the direction of the stands. A bag full of golf balls soared up from the stand upside down with golf balls tumbling out, only instead of falling to the ground, they followed the bag to Tucker.   
  
  
  
"OUCH!" yelled Tucker as about 20 golf balls nailed him at high speeds.  
  
  
  
Before they could fall to the ground, a tall girl with red hair flicked her wand at them. The bag turned right way up and the golf balls all flew into it and she caught it deftly in her hands.   
  
  
  
"Anyways," Said Tucker, recovering "we're going to have another mock game. Professor, could you just chuck all those balls every where one at a time?" he stopped and rubbed his head in the spot where two of the golf balls had hit him one after the other and continued, turning to Jenny "We're going to see how you deal with all the other players flying around"  
  
  
  
Jenny nodded.  
  
  
  
"Alright everyone, let's do it"   
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
Amanda tossed the golf balls to Harry, flipped her red hair over her shoulder, seized the Quaffle and took off. Everyone else scattered. Jarod had released the two bludgers and he and the other beater- a boy named Anthony Martin- streaked off after them. The keeper was a boy everyone called "Flash", though Harry didn't know why. Eddie doubled in as a second chaser.  
  
  
  
Flying backwards towards the stands, Harry noticed Jenny watching him expectantly. Taking a golf ball, he tossed it off to her left. Before it had even fully left his hand, she darted sideways and caught it easily.  
  
  
  
He tossed her a few more like this in all directions, and all times, before the ball had totally left his hand, she would be suddenly in the balls path and catch it without trying.  
  
  
  
Harry picked up another ball out of the bag and hurled it across the pitch. She streaked after it, catching it with ease.   
  
  
  
Harry was amazed. He hurled the golf balls in all directions and she caught every one of them, twisting and diving around the other players like they weren't even there.  
  
  
  
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a bludger whizzing towards Jenny from behind. Before he could even move or shout a warning, she rolled and the bludger whizzed by her. She couldn't have seen it or heard it, but at least she wasn't hit by it. Harry breathed a sigh of relief.  
  
  
  
Hurling a golf ball hard towards the ground, Jenny dived and caught it in a matter of seconds.  
  
  
  
"You sure that you didn't inherit this talent somewhere?" called Harry as Jenny tossed the golf ball back to him.  
  
  
  
"I don't think I inherited it, as far as I can tell, my family is all muggle, or at least my mum is………"  
  
  
  
"What about your father?" asked Harry quietly.  
  
  
  
Jenny turned slightly so she was looking him in the eye. Emerald eyes gazing into identical emerald eyes.  
  
  
  
"Never knew him, my mum doesn't even remember him." Jenny shrugged "Can't even find him though, no DNA matches or anything, only thing that mum can remember is his eyes, she says they were green just like mine."  
  
  
  
Harry felt like he was being hit with extreme deja vu for the rest of the tryout session.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
After about an hour of this, Tucker called a stop.  
  
  
  
He was smiling so much that Jenny wondered whether it would crack his face and make it fall off.  
  
  
  
"Hansen, you are definitely on this team." He said grandly "I'll tell you when the first practice is alright?"   
  
  
  
Jenny nodded. She was on the team and she was happy about it.  
  
  
  
"Alright people," continued Tucker "we are going to keep this a secret, I want to surprise the Slytherins in our first match! So don't tell anybody alright?"  
  
  
  
Everyone nodded and went to put their brooms away.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
Jenny felt like she was still flying and Eddie was skipping when they reached the library about ten minutes later.  
  
  
  
Jon, Salina and Thomas looked up from their assorted books and homework.  
  
  
  
"Why are you guys so late? We were about to come look for you!" said Jon.  
  
  
  
"Ohh………were you guys snogging in some broom closet?" said Salina mischievously.  
  
  
  
Jenny and Eddie looked at each other in horror.  
  
  
  
"NO!"   
  
  
  
"We were at Quidditch tryouts." Answered Eddie.  
  
  
  
Thomas glanced at his watch, "they ended an hour ago." Looking back up them, he raised an eyebrow.  
  
  
  
"Oh, I guess it's safe to tell you, because you guys are my best friends and you wouldn't tell………" started Jenny  
  
  
  
"Oh, So you WERE snogging in a broom closet?!"  
  
  
  
"What?! NO!" Jenny grimaced.  
  
  
  
"Anyways," she continued, "I got on to the Gryffindor Quidditch team"  
  
  
  
"Oh, that's nic-" Jon dropped his book and did a double take "did I just hear what I thought I heard?"   
  
  
  
Salina didn't answer. She was to busy trying to lift her jaw off the floor.  
  
  
  
Thomas jumped about a foot into the air at Jenny's words  
  
  
  
"You got on WHAT?"  
  
  
  
"The Gryffindor Quidditch team."  
  
  
  
"That is SO awesome," said Salina "I remember you telling me that you never have been on a broom!"  
  
  
  
"That was the first time," answered Jenny.  
  
  
  
"Then you must be good………" said Salina, beaming.  
  
  
  
"I guess so………" Jenny sank into a chair and pulled out her homework. "You mustn't tell anyone though"  
  
  
  
"Don't worry, we won't" said Thomas, reassuring her.  
  
  
  
The five friends lapsed into a comfortable silence while doing their homework.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
Harry walked into his office.   
  
  
  
Putting his firebolt away in the cupboard, he opened the door to his living quarters.  
  
  
  
Walking over to his bed, he flopped down on it. Teaching six- hours of classes plus three hours of Quidditch tired him out.  
  
  
  
He lay there staring at the ceiling for sometime. Sitting up, he pulled the photo album off the night table and opened it on his lap. This was the same album that Hagrid had gave him at the end of his first year, only it was much more full. Pictures of his parents and their friends along with dozens of pictures of him, Ron and Hermione.   
  
  
  
Here was one of Lily, James, Remus and Sirius in their seventh year, next to it, he had put a picture of him, Ron and Hermione when they were in seventh year.  
  
  
  
There was another of his parents wedding, underneath it; he had put a picture of Ron and Hermione's wedding. Like Sirius, he was the best man while Ginny was the maid of honor.   
  
  
  
The next picture was of Lily and James, sitting on a bench somewhere. It was a picture that had been taken just after they had gotten out of Hogwarts. He was about to turn the page when something caught his eye.  
  
  
  
He had seen that before. His mother's eyes. Not in the pictures. He already knew about and had seen them in the pictures, what he had seen, he had seen those green eyes recently and not in the mirror. Harry racked his brain on where he had seen them when something popped into his head.  
  
  
  
~*~ flashback~*~  
  
  
  
"You sure that you didn't inherit this talent somewhere?" called Harry as Jenny tossed the golf ball back to him.  
  
  
  
"I don't think I inherited it, as far as I can tell, my family is all muggle, or at least my mum is………"  
  
  
  
"What about your father?" asked Harry quietly.  
  
  
  
Jenny turned slightly so she was looking him in the eye. Emerald eyes gazing into identical emerald eyes.   
  
  
  
"Never knew him, my mum doesn't even remember him." Jenny shrugged "Can't even find him though, no DNA matches or anything, only thing that mum can remember is his eyes, she says they were green just like mine."  
  
  
  
~*~End flashback~*~  
  
  
  
Harry nearly dropped the photo album.  
  
  
  
Now he knew where he had seen those eyes.   
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
Now Harry suspects something……… J:P   
  
  
  
So there's chapter 10. It was fun to write! 


	10. Letters and lessons

Summary: Jenny Hansen has always known she's been different from other children. Something powerful resides within her. She doesn't know who her father is. All her mother remembers is a passionate green-eyed stranger. When a mysterious letter appears for an enchanted school, Jenny wonders if this is the answer to her questions… 

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter; he belongs to the wonderful J.K. Rowling, 

Genevieve, Jenny, Angela, the story plot and all other original characters are mine however^_^

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kirijava Deamon: No, they were not snogging, Salina was just teasing them.

Mjk306: Will do.

Kadi Rilla Wholi: Yes, Jenny's better than Harry at Quidditch, and no, Harry isn't a referee, he just helps out the Gryffindor team a lot (You know, because they were his old team and he still loves Quidditch and such) and you'll find out what Harry teaches the class soon:P

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Author's note: I have raised the beginning of this chapter's rating to 'R' for reasons that you will find out as you read it. The latter half of the chapter will go back to its original rating (PG-13)

Heir of the Phoenix 

Chapter 11: Letters and Lessons.

Jenny had only been gone two weeks and Charlotte missed her more than could be explained.

There had been a few questions of Jenny's whereabouts when school started, but all Charlotte said was "She's transferred to a boarding school up north"

Charlotte sighed and put her homework away, She couldn't concentrate.

Father seemed worse, now that he was released from prison, and unlike what she had done on other years, she couldn't escape to Jenny's house.

So she took long walks around the neighborhood, making sure that she came back on time, so her father didn't have an excuse to beat her. 

Often, she went to visit Todd, who was always glad to have company.

"It's nice to have someone to talk too, I almost never get visitors." He told her often.

Sometimes though, he was busy at the ministry, so Charlotte had no one too talk too. 

One night, when she was getting ready for bed, there was a soft tapping at her window.

Glancing up, she saw Athena hovering in mid air outside of it. Quickly she opened it and the silver owl settled down on the sill and stuck he leg out. Attached to it was a very thick roll of parchment.

Charlotte seized it and unrolled it. 

_Dear Charlotte,_

_Hogwarts is amazing! It's a huge castle on a lake, and there are ghosts, suits of Armour and even a poltergeist (even though he's extremely annoying)_

_I'M ON THE GRYFFINDOR QUIDDITCH TEAM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!_

_I can't even believe it, I'm a first year on the Quidditch team, that's really rare, I'm the first one in like 23 years or something like that, and the guy before me who was a first year player was the first one in 100 years! _

_Eddie dragged me off to WATCH the tryouts yesterday and afterwards he asked one of the players to borrow that guy's broom and afterwards I got a turn and it was amazing, flying is SO cool and apparently I'm really good. _

The lessons are so interesting, my best (and favorite) class is charms, Professor Mariotte is so nice! I'm told that I'm really advanced for my age, so I do bonus projects for extra marks. I don't like Potions though, Professor Snape is really mean and he favors the Slytherins (Snape was ONE of those slimy gits when he was young) 

My friend Thomas is going down into history as the first student that Snape has complimented who isn't in Slytherin house. Thomas is ruddy brilliant at potions, (and he's in Ravenclaw). Apparently, the Ravenclaws and the Hufflepuffs were having a double potions class and the guy beside Thomas tripped or something and his wand sort of zapped his potion, and it started to bubble over and it was going to explode. Some how, Thomas stopped it. Afterwards, Snape said, (apparently rather grudgingly) "I see you are competent at potions Mr. White" 

Anyways, I can't wait till Christmas, it's only been two weeks and it feels like a year, I'll send you some Bertie Bott's every flavor beans soon, they're like jellybeans, but unlike the normal flavors like cotton candy and strawberry, they mean EVERY flavor. Salina lives on them.

Wish you were here, 

    ~ Jenny ~

Charlotte looked up from the letter and realized that there were tears in her eyes, Athena hooted and fluttered over to her shoulder. 

Charlotte sat down to write a reply; Athena perched on the back of the desk chair. Charlotte was so absorbed in doing so that she didn't hear the heavy footsteps coming up the stairs.

BAM.

The door flew open.

Charlotte jumped. Athena hooted and took flight to the top of the armoire.

Standing in the doorway, red-faced and seething; was Charlotte's father. Charlotte shrank in her chair. He was drunk. 

"WHY AREN'T YOU DOING YOUR CHORES YOUNG- WHAT IN BLOODY HELL IS THAT????"  He caught sight of Athena perched on top of the armoire. 

"It's an owl," said Charlotte in a small voice.

"WHAT IN RUDDY HELL IS AN OWL DOING IN MY HOUSE? I THOUGHT I SAID NO PETS! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING? YOU ARE DEFIYING ME YOU WORTHLESS BRAT!" He strode over to Charlotte and slapped her viciously across the face. Charlotte and the chair crashed to the floor. Athena hooted in outrage. 

Tears streaming down her face, Charlotte slowly got to her feet and backed up to the wall. 

"She's not mine………" Charlotte tried to explain.

"OH? NOT YOURS? THEN WHO THE HELL'S IS IT AND WHAT IS IT DOING IN YOUR ROOM?"

Charlotte quaked in fear, she couldn't explain who's it was, it might give away Jenny's secret.

Her father swung at her again, his fist connecting with her jaw. Charlotte fell to the floor. The pain was unbearable.

"WHO'S IS IT?" Her father bellowed. 

Athena rose into the air and made a hasty departure out the window, disappearing into the night. 

Charlotte's father hauled her to her feet and slapped her again. 

"I ASKED YOU WHO'S IS IT? I EXPECT AN ANSWER, WHEN I ASK YOU A QUESTION, I WANT IT ANSWERED RIGHT AWAY!" He punched her harder.

Charlotte nearly screamed from the pain, but years of this had conditioned her not too, it only made it worse. She was terrified; her father had never hit her this much, what had happened to make him so angry? Usually, he would yell his lungs out, slap her and go to his bedroom and pass out.

Charlotte felt something hit her head. Stars erupted in her vision, and she sank to the floor. A kick knocked the wind out of her. 

"WHO'S OWL WAS IT AND WHY DID IT COME HERE?"    

 Charlotte's father's arm drew back to punch her again when another hand grabbed his arm from behind and halted it.

It was Todd, wand in hand and looking furious.

"PETRIFICUS TOTALUS!" he bellowed. A flash of blue light erupted from the wand and Charlotte's father's legs snapped together and his arms stuck to his side. He crashed to the floor looking positively outraged. The sight would have been comical if Charlotte hadn't been in so much pain.

Athena soared in the window and perched on the sill.

Todd kneeled down and looked into Charlotte's clouded eyes.

"Are you alright?" he asked. 

Charlotte managed a small nod. Her jaw was on fire.

"How………?" she whispered. Todd smiled slightly. "That owl of your friends is quite intelligent, she came straight to me, hooting loud enough to wake the neighborhood, Of course, I could feel something was up anyways and she confirmed it, I followed her here."

A loud grunt reached their ears. 

Turning around, Todd saw that the bastard who called himself Charlotte's father was making noises, trying to talk. 

Todd unfroze his mouth. Instead of looking mad, now her father looked scared.

"What are you?" he asked in hoarse voice.

Todd bent over and looked him in the eye.

"Your worst nightmare and I'll hex you into oblivion if you lay a hand on her or anyone else………again." He said slowly. 

Charlotte's father's eyes widened in fear.

Todd bent down and picked up Charlotte. 

"Where are you taking her?!" demanded her father.

"Hospital."

Todd pointed his wand at Charlotte's father. "Finite incantato!" he said and with a 'pop' he and Charlotte disappeared. 

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

 Jenny was eating breakfast the next day when the owl post arrived half way though her toast.

Athena swooped in and dropped an envelope in Jenny's lap, and soared back out.

"Thanks!" Jenny called out after her rapidly departing owl.

Tearing open the envelope, she realized that it was from Charlotte.

  Dear Jenny,

My father won't ever hit me again! I could sing! But I can't, considering I'm sitting in hospital………

Jenny gasped and nearly dropped the letter, Eddie looked up from his porridge, concerned.

………Last night, I got your letter and as I was writing back to you my father burst in and saw Athena……….you know how he is about animals, and he was drunk and as usual he started hitting me……….only this time, Athena went and fetched Todd, who cursed my father!!!! It was ruddy brilliant and I would have cheered if my jaw didn't hurt so much. And Todd told my dad that he'd hex my father in oblivion if he hurt me or anyone again. Todd took me too the wizard's hospital………it's called St. Mungo's and it's got all these strange people running around. I saw a man with fur and a tail and another who was covered in rainbow flashing polka dots! One of the healers mended my jaw in like five seconds, but it still hurts.

I wish I was there, being a witch sounds like so much fun, I'd love to even visit Hogwarts………

Your friend,

  Charlotte

"Who's that from?" asked Eddie, curious.

"Charlotte, you met her on the platform," answered Jenny.

"Oh, what's it about?"

Jenny handed him the letter.

Eddie's eyes went from normal sized to the size of saucers when he read the letter.  

"Oh………" Eddie lowered the letter, "blimey………" he trailed off.

"What class do we have this morning?" Asked Jenny.

"Defense against Dark arts," answered Eddie.

"Ah, his last class was interesting, but we didn't learn anything because of all those people asking questions about Voldemort………"

Eddie flinched.

"What? The guy is dead and gone, we can call him by name if we want."

"Hard to get out of the habit" muttered Eddie.

Jenny nodded.

The two of them made their way out of the great hall.

   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ten minutes later, they were sitting in the back of the Defense against dark arts classroom.

Professor Potter had nodded to them, smiling slightly, when they had come in, there was still about 15 minutes till the bell rang, so he had bent over his desk and appeared to be marking essays. Or at least, that's what Jenny and Eddie figured he was doing.

They had Defense against dark arts with the Hufflepuffs, so Jon showed up a few seconds later and sat on the other side of Eddie. 

Jenny was rather amazed when the class was filled within five minutes and still ten minutes before the bell – No one wanted to be late for the great Harry Potter's class.

When the bell had rung, Professor Potter stood up from his desk. The class immediately fell silent.

"Hello," He said "As you all know, I am Professor Harry Potter, since last class was devoted to questions, we can now start on real lessons." He said this as if all the questioning annoyed him.

"Anyways, I would like you all to think of me as a normal professor"

He paused and surveyed the class.

"Today, We are going to learn a spell that has saved my life many times, both with the dark lord and later when I was an auror. It is a second year spell, but I believe you all are capable of it with practice, this is the Disarming spell."

He paused again and looked over the class, he radiated quiet confidence. 

"Can anyone tell me the incantation for the Disarming spell?"

Arianna timidly put up her hand.

"Miss Wood?"

"Um………Expelliarmus, I think………" She said hurriedly, praying that it was right.

"Yes, Expelliarmus it is, 5 points to Gryffindor Miss Wood," said Professor Potter, smiling slightly.

"Now, this spell can have painful results because………?" He trailed off and looked expectantly at the class.

Eddie put his hand up.

"Yes Mr. Weasley?"

"Well, Dad told me that he got thrown into a wall once when he got hit with it." 

Jenny watched curiously as Professor Potter partially stifled a laugh. 

Harry remembered in their sixth year when Ron had attempted to ask out a Ravenclaw by the name of Vanessa Wilcox. Some how they had had a misunderstanding and Ron ended up as an imprint on the wall. Harry wasn't quite sure of the whole story, as Ron had been unwilling to talk about it. It had been soon after that Ron had started dating Hermione. 

"Yes, that does tend to happen Mr. Weasley," said Professor Potter smoothly. "I remember when I was first taught the spell in my second year, The Defense against Dark arts Professor then wasn't exactly the greatest, and in the end, he turned out to be a fraud. But I remember when he and Professor Snape dueled. It was actually quite funny."

Several of the student's eyes widened.

Harry raised an eyebrow at them and continued.

"Anyways, who wishes to try out this spell first?" he asked.

Most of the students exchanged nervous glances. An odd feeling of confidence suddenly seized Jenny, she raised her hand.

"Miss Hansen? Care to come to the front of classroom?"

Jenny made her way up too the front of the classroom. When she got there, she began to feel nervous.

"Now, Miss Hansen, you are going to try to disarm me, what is the incantation again class?" 

"Expelliarmus!" chorused the class.

Jenny felt slightly more at ease. 

Professor Potter backed up a few feet and stood by his desk and looked at her expectantly.

Jenny smiled slightly and raised her wand. The familiar feeling of power washed over her.

"Expelliarmus!" she shouted, waving her wand. 

A stream of red light burst out of her wand. She saw Professor Potter's eyes widen in shock as it hit him full in the chest. He flew backwards across his desk onto the floor with a loud 'CRASH'. His wand flew into the air and Jenny caught it deftly.

There wasn't a sound in the room. Everyone sat gaping at Jenny, who was standing there looking small and scared and Professor Potter, who was picking himself up from behind his desk, his glasses and cloak askew.

"Well," he said sounding a little stunned, "I definitely did not expect that." 

"I'm sorry sir,………" said Jenny quietly.

"Don't be," Said Professor Potter cheerfully "That was an excellent demonstration of the Disarming spell, you are the first first year that successfully pulled off the spell, 15 points to Gryffindor."

He strode over to her and shook her hand. The class exploded in to whispers.  

"Now, if I could please have my wand back Miss Hansen, so we can continue the lesson."

Several students giggled slightly as Jenny went red, she had forgotten that his wand had been in her hand.

Silently, she handed him back his wand and made her way back to sit in her seat. 

Professor Potter turned to the class.

"Now, after the excellent demonstration, I am going to divide you all up into pairs to practice the spell. Will everyone choose a partner?" 

Eddie and Jenny partnered up, Jon ended up with a tall blonde Hufflepuff girl that Jenny didn't know. 

One thing she knew though was that everyone was giving her strange looks. Even Eddie looked a little perturbed.

As shouts of "Expelliarmus!" and feeble jets of red light crossed the room, Jenny succeeded to disarm Eddie five times in a row. He managed to get her once.

Professor Potter circled the room, stopping here and there to give students pointers and tips. When the bell rang, everyone packed up and trouped out the door, chattering about how interesting the lesson was. Professor Potter hadn't given them any homework except to read up on disarming and protection spells and make a few notes to bring to class.

It was break now and Jenny, Eddie and Jon slumped against the wall near the statue of Bartholomew the barmy. 

"That was really good spell work Jenny," said Jon.

"Thanks, but why was everyone staring at me funny?"

Jon and Eddie exchanged odd glances.

"What?" demanded Jenny.

"Well………um………" said Eddie uncomfortably.

"Jenny………when you went up to the front of the classroom and stood next to Professor Potter………" Jon trailed off

"Yah, what about it?" asked Jenny, getting annoyed.

"Well………um………what were trying to say Jens………well what we're trying to say is that you look exactly like him,………" said Eddie slowly.

Whatever Jenny had been expecting, it had not been that.

"WHAT?" Jenny dropped her books.

"You look like him, I didn't notice it till you and Harry were standing right next to each other, but you look like him………it's creepy." Said Eddie.

"I look like Professor Potter?" said Jenny trying very hard and failing to keep the sarcasm out of her voice. 

"Um………yah."

"Was that why everyone was whispering?" asked Jenny, sounding like she was trying to be calm and not sarcastic and not succeeding.

"Probably………"

They began to walk down the hall towards their next class, History of Magic.

"Like how much do I look like him?" asked Jenny.

"Like everything, or nearly everything………" said Eddie, looking at his best friend in wonderment. He compared Jenny with his mental picture of Harry. Same eyes, definitely………same sort of thin face, same nose……… the only things that were noticeably different was Jenny's brown curly hair and her peaches'n'cream complexion. Eddie presumed she had gotten that from her mother.

"Mmhmm………" said Jenny absently, now deep in thought.  

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Heyhey everybody…. I'm SOOO sorry that it took me so long to update, the computer that my stories were on was without the internet for about 3 months. I have chapters 11-16 written, but I'm going to post them at intervals of about 2-3 days in-between them. 

Thanks for waiting for so long!!! 


	11. Quidditch

Summary: Jenny Hansen has always known she's been different from other children. Something powerful resides within her. She doesn't know who her father is. All her mother remembers is a passionate green-eyed stranger. When a mysterious letter appears for an enchanted school, Jenny wonders if this is the answer to her questions.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter; He belongs to the wonderful JK. Rowling, The story plot, Jenny, Eddie, Thomas, Jon, Salina, Genevieve and all other original characters are mine however!!! ^_^  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Alec: lol...I already explained why Jenny always shocks and amazes to you... I've started latching onto some real plot/conflict, so watch out for that in the near future.  
  
Kady Rilla Wholi: Hmmm... I never thought of Todd adopting Charlotte. It's a cool idea, but I think the problem of her dad is solved, as he is now completely afraid of Todd.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Heir of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 12: Quidditch  
  
November swept in on the castle with a frost bitten fury.  
  
"Damn, it's cold," remarked Jon as they made there from the greenhouses back to the castle bundled up against the wind with their scarves over their faces.  
  
"I'll second that," replied Eddie, his teeth chattering.  
  
"Hey! I have to have Quidditch practice in this!" remarked Jenny jokingly. Tucker was relentless, any weather, all weather, he'd have them out practicing for three hours straight. Not that Jenny didn't like it; she had fallen in love with Quidditch. Her obsession almost rivaled Eddie's, but not quite. She loved playing Quidditch, not following it.  
  
Flying was the thing that she was best at, Charms coming up a close second.  
  
Jenny loved being on her broom, a Nimbus 3000. Usually, it seemed like it wasn't even there and it was just her, the wind and sky.  
  
Her instincts were so honed that Patrick often joked that she didn't need to train- she was born to fly.  
  
Amanda, the sixth year chaser- usually agreed. At this, Tucker would roll his eyes and yell at them all to get back to work.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
At 4:30, Jenny snuck out of the castle with her broomstick. Tucker was still adamant that her being on the team was kept a secret and remarkably, it was still a secret- sort of.  
  
"Hey Hansen! What's that broom you've got for?" yelled a loud drawling voice.  
  
Jenny turned to the source of the irritating noise. Standing leaning against a tree was Derek Malfoy. For about two months, he had basically disappeared. Not that Jenny was complaining. But now he seemed to have forgotten the incident in the hallway and was back to his usual swaggering self.  
  
"None of you business!" shouted Jenny back at him.  
  
"Is it yours? If it is, you could get in trouble..." he drawled. Jenny fought the panicky feeling that was rising in her stomach.  
  
Thinking quickly she irritably yelled: "It's Amanda McKinnon's broom, she asked me to fetch it for her, now go away or I'll hex you!" Jenny began to stride towards the direction of the Quidditch pitch.  
  
"You, hex me? I think not you mudblood!" Said Derek scathingly.  
  
Jenny's irritation grew.  
  
"Well, it's not like you could hex anybody!" she yelled over her shoulder.  
  
She had walked about twenty paces when she felt her instincts go on red alert and ducked.  
  
There was a loud 'CRACK' as the spell missed her. She turned back to Derek, who was gaping at her in shock.  
  
"You'll have to do better than that Malfoy!" She called, laughing. Derek's pale visage darkened.  
  
From where she was standing, she could hear Derek muttering oaths under his breath as he stalked away.  
  
Continuing to laugh to herself, she made her way to the Quidditch pitch.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Reaching the pitch, she found that the rest of the team was already there.  
  
"Hey Jens!" called Amanda waving. Emma Wilson and Steven Sniggle, the two new chasers waved also. Emma was a quiet third year with light brown hair and a ready smile, while Steven was a tall dark haired fifth year with a knack for making anything funny.  
  
"Hey guys!" called Jenny.  
  
Tucker kicked open the case of balls and as one, they all mounted their brooms and rose into the air. Emma grabbed the Quaffle and streaked after Patrick (Jenny learned that he was called 'Flash' on the pitch, though she didn't know why), who was trying to make it to the goalposts before she did.  
  
Steven and Amanda were hot on their heels (broomtails?) with the bludgers and Anthony and Tucker in hot pursuit.  
  
Jenny eyed the snitch hovering a few feet away from her. It seemed to be teasing her. Jenny got the feeling as soon as she moved, it would disappear.  
  
She shifted her broom towards it and in a nano-second it was gone. Jenny smiled, she couldn't see it, but she knew exactly where it was going. Wheeling around, she streaked after it. If the thing had been sentient, it would have been shocked. Within ten seconds, Jenny had caught up to the little ball that had been hovering around on of the goalposts opposite of where the rest of the team was and grabbed it out of the air.  
  
Jenny let it go and waited for a minute. It was rather pointless, because she could tell where it was going anyways. She sped off after it when she heard a desperate yell.  
  
"HANSEN! DUCK!"  
  
Jenny reacted instantly, jerking her broom into a steep dive and rolled. Suddenly, she swerved to the right and the bludger shot past her and embedded itself in the ground.  
  
"Bloody hell!" she heard Anthony yell from somewhere above and behind her.  
  
Jenny didn't think much of it, it was a stupid bludger, not too hard to avoid.  
  
After what seem like a half hour (but it was really three) Tucker called them too the ground.  
  
"Awesome practice! We're going to beat those Slytherin scum for sure this weekend!"  
  
This weekend?  
  
Jenny shook her head... it was the...10th...oh, right...  
  
Jenny swore to herself, she had forgotten that there was a match this weekend some how.  
  
As they made their way back to the castle, Emma walked beside Jenny.  
  
"How do you fly like that?" she asked.  
  
Jenny shrugged.  
  
"I don't know."  
  
"But, it's like you can tell where the snitch is..." pressed Emma.  
  
"I can," said Jenny shrugging again. Emma dropped her broom, her eyes like saucers.  
  
"You can TELL where they are?" She demanded.  
  
"Uh...yah, I don't know how though, I just know..."Jenny paused and thought a bit, "I think it's just something like ESP"  
  
"Sweet," said Emma, not having a clue what ESP was.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
On Saturday morning, Jenny was a bundle of nerves.  
  
"You have to eat something" coaxed Arianna. Eddie nodded and offered her some of his toast. Jenny blanched and shook her head.  
  
"You aren't the one who's worrying about throwing up your food all over the pitch!" muttered Jenny to them under her breath.  
  
Some how, the fact that Jenny was seeker had remained secret. Neither Tucker, nor rest of the team knew how.  
  
In fact, the entire school was wondering who was the Gryffindor seeker. Some eyewitnesses reported that she was small with brown hair, but had been moving so fast that they were unable to identify her. There was a general agreement among the Gryffindors and the rest of the school that she was good, who ever she was.  
  
At 10:40, Jenny walked out to the Quidditch pitch with her broom. Some how, the rest of the team had gotten there before her. Silently, they changed into their Quidditch robes.  
  
"Well," said Tucker, who was never partial to long speeches or tactic rants; "We know what were going to do, we know all our strategy, we know we are going to beat those Slytherins right out of the air!"  
  
There was a chorus of "Ayes!"  
  
Out on the pitch, they could here the crowd shouting and cheering.  
  
"Now, since this our first game," explained Tucker to Jenny, "We do an exhibition lap of the pitch as they announce us, so everybody, get your butts on those brooms!"  
  
Everyone mounted their brooms'. A magically amplified voice cut through the crowd.  
  
"Now presenting the Slytherin team! McSwigan, Vornholt, Mancour, Warrington, Flint, Montague AND Avery!"  
  
Cheers echoed across the pitch from the far end where Jenny could see a mass of green.  
  
Jenny got ready to kick off.  
  
"And now the Gryffindor team! Tucker, Martin, Sniggle, Watson, McKinnon, Wood AND Hansen!"  
  
The cheering was deafening.  
  
Jenny followed the rest of the team out of the narrow wings, out of the corner of her eye; she could see binoculars turning her way.  
  
She could also see Colin, the fourth year Ravenclaw that she had played football with bellowing into the magical microphone from the teacher's box.  
  
He was spouting off facts about the Slytherin team rather reluctantly. Then he turned to the Gryffindor team  
  
"And now, we see that this year Tucker has put together a winning side, with three new recruits! Emma Watson and Steven Sniggle as new chasers and Jenny Hansen as Gryffindor's new seeker! She is the first first year seeker since the great Harry Potter graced the Quidditch pitch!"  
  
Behind Colin, you could see 'The great Harry Potter' rolling his eyes.  
  
Jenny spotted this as she flew past the box and laughed. The two teams set down in the middle of the pitch.  
  
Madam Hooch was still there and still was the referee. Her yellow eyes still narrowed at the sight of the two team captains.  
  
"Now, I want a clean game, unlike last year. Captain's shake hands!"  
  
Tucker and a wide sour looking boy named McSwigan stepped forwards and shook hands. They appeared to be trying to break each other's fingers.  
  
"On my whistle then...3...2...1!" The whistle blasted and Madam Hooch kicked open the ball case. The players and balls rose as one.  
  
Jenny felt the wind rush through her hair, her new world of awareness returned. It felt fuzzier, less clear, but it was there. The crowd roared and faded into white noise.  
  
Amanda spurted forward and seized the Quaffle.  
  
"And they're off! With Gryffindor in possession, yes Amanda McKinnon in possession, one of the best chasers that Hogwarts has seen in awhile if I do say so myself, She's heading for the Slytherin goalposts- ARGH! No- intercepted by Montague- Montague of Slytherin tearing up the pitch- HA! - That must of hurt, some bludger work by Anthony Martin of Gryffindor..."  
  
Jenny watched as Emma grabbed the Quaffle and streaked down the pitch, weaving in and around Slytherin team members.  
  
Jenny rose high above the game, a little ways off; she could see Avery- the Slytherin seeker- searching on his own. Jenny sensed something small and jerky move near the Slytherin goal posts, the opposite end of the pitch from where Avery was searching. She was debating whether to go investigate it when-  
  
"YES! SNIGGLE HAS BEATEN THE KEEPER! 10-0 TO GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
Jenny watched as Steven circled the pitch punching his fists in the air. The Gryffindor supporters screamed their approval.  
  
The Snitch, or what Jenny had presumed to be the snitch, disappeared. There was too much movement on the pitch for Jenny to sense where it went.  
  
Then she saw it. It was hovering just below Mancour's ear. Turning her broom, she pulled into a dive.  
  
"Watson has the Quaffle...she's streaking up the pitch...OUCH-Watson is hit by a bludger- Slytherin in possession- Vornholt has the Quaffle-Now Montague- Vornholt- Flint- Montague- IS THAT THE SNITCH?"  
  
For Colin had seen Jenny go into her dive. Mancour looked up in horror to see Jenny barreling towards him. Jenny felt the wind push her forward- She was so focused that she almost missed it coming towards her.  
  
That was when she noticed that Avery wasn't looking at her, but something behind her.  
  
Jenny upended the broom almost vertically and shot towards the ground. A split second later, a bludger shot through the place where her head had just been. She pulled out of the dive a good five feet from the ground and rose up to playing level. The snitch had disappeared.  
  
Cheering and gasps of amazement came from the crowd. Colin continued yelling into the megaphone so excitedly that Jenny wondered whether he was going to wet himself.  
  
"And Jenny Hansen narrowly avoids being hit by a bludger! And Gryffindor is in possession...Chaser McKinnon with the Quaffle, passes to Sniggle, Sniggle swerves around Vornholt, Sniggle passes to Watson, Watson dodges bludger...  
  
Jenny watched out of the corner of her eye as McSwigan, the Slytherin keeper flew out to meet Emma...  
  
"WATSON BEATS THE KEEPER- 20 POINTS FOR GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
The Gryffindor supporters roared and cheered, faintly, you could hear the Slytherins boo-ing. Jenny didn't care, Gryffindor was 20 points ahead and they had been playing for less than ten minutes.  
  
Off at the far end of the pitch, she could see Avery. He was still searching for the snitch himself.  
  
Well, Jenny thought dryly to herself, I'd better get searching, my damn senses are clouded with all these people zooming around...  
  
"And Slytherin in possession, Oh! Now Gryffindor- No- Slytherin again- Vornholt has the Quaffle...attempted intercept by Sniggle...ARGH! Slytherin scores. 20-10 Gryffindor, McKinnon in possession, she's streaking down the pitch, dodges one- No- two bludgers, McSwigan moving into position- and YES!"  
  
Amanda scored. Colin continued to bellow happily into the magical mega- phone.  
  
Jenny rose higher into the air and searched for the snitch. She watched as Amanda and Steven scored another four goals, bringing Gryffindor's total to 60-10.  
  
"Nice score by Sniggle, Montague in possession, He's heading for the Gryffindor goalposts...He shoots...and MISSES! HA! Watson in possession..."  
  
Then she felt it. Wheeling around on her broom, she saw the snitch flit past Emma. Emma had stopped in surprise; any person would after nearly colliding with something like the snitch.  
  
Jenny dropped and sped after it.  
  
"Watson pausing for an odd reason, MERLIN! It's the Snitch!"  
  
Jenny could see the confounding little ball less the five feet ahead of her and winging it away fast. Weaving around Warrington and Anthony, she dove after it.  
  
"She's closing on it!"  
  
Jenny had the faintest warning when...  
  
WHAM!  
  
Jenny plummeted to the ground, reeling and quickly recovered.  
  
It was Avery- tailing the snitch.  
  
Cursing, she sped after them.  
  
Quicker than she expected, she advanced on Avery and the snitch.  
  
It felt like she was in a middle of a whirlwind, the eye of the storm, yet not quite. The wind had risen to her need and was pushing her forward, she could feel it. She was at Avery's broomtail- waist- shoulder- within a few seconds she was level with him.  
  
Avery looked over his shoulder in shock to find Jenny staring him in the eye.  
  
Neck to neck they zoomed after the snitch.  
  
Jenny leaned forward and put on a burst of speed. Reaching out her hand, she felt her fingers close over the little snitch...  
  
The roar of the crowd suddenly stopped being white noise.  
  
"AND GRYFFINDOR WINS WITH A SPECTACULAR CATCH BY GRYFFINDOR SEEKER JENNY HANSEN!"  
  
Jenny sank to the ground looking in wonderment at the snitch in her hand; She almost had not caught it.  
  
Suddenly she was being bowled over by Emma and Amanda, "You did it, you did it, we won!" shouted Emma hoarsely as they hugged her. Two more collisions announced the arrival of Eddie and Salina. Jon and Thomas waved from a distance, because they could not penetrate the crowd surrounding the Gryffindor team.  
  
Off in the distance you could see the Slytherin team standing in a huddle with their fans and scowling at the rest of the school's celebration.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"That was such a cool match, maybe I'll try out for the Ravenclaw team next year." Said Thomas grinning.  
  
Jenny looked at him in horror.  
  
Thomas and the rest of them collapsed on the floor laughing at Jenny's expression.  
  
"Trust me Jens, I wouldn't...my ego would be able to stand it" He said, doubled over and wheezing.  
  
They were sitting on old couches in a vacant classroom on the fifth floor. Being best friends in different houses made it hard to find somewhere to hang out. They couldn't exactly go into others common rooms and waiting for someone coming in or out to fetch the person they were waiting for was frustrating.  
  
"You know," said Jon thoughtfully, "we could ask our head of houses if we can go into other houses common rooms...I mean, we've stood out side of all of the entrances waiting for somebody and we already know each others passwords, because we hear them so often..."  
  
"You know what Jon? Sometimes I wonder why you're not in Ravenclaw," remarked Salina.  
  
"I know the hat had a hell of a time figuring me out,..." said Jon laughing, "It had no idea where to put me!"  
  
Salina snorted.  
  
"It wasn't you who set the record for the most time spent underneath that hat! That was me!" she said.  
  
"Why did it take so long for you Salina?" asked Thomas curiously.  
  
"It was torn between my family history and my values, We had a long argument," said Salina in an odd tone of voice halfway between yelling and whispering, "It wanted to put me in Slytherin, because that was 'where my blood ran' and all that pureblood crap, I'll be damned before I turned out like my family, they're evil heartless gits, the lot of them!"  
  
"That's what the hat told me too" Said Jenny quietly. She looked up to see the four of them staring at her. Thomas and Salina looked bemused; Eddie and Jon had odd looks on their faces.  
  
"What do you mean by that?" asked Salina.  
  
"I mean, it said 'should I put you in Ravenclaw, where your mind will be accepted, or Gryffindor, where your blood runs?'"  
  
"It said that?" said Thomas looking thoughtful, "But your muggleborn like me, how could it be 'where your blood runs'?"  
  
"I have no idea," said Jenny shrugging, "I wish I knew"  
  
"All the hat said when I put it on was 'Ah, another Weasley!' and put me in Gryffindor," said Eddie sullenly.  
  
"That isn't too bad...is it?" asked Thomas.  
  
"No, I guess not, but it was a little depressing if you know what I mean, apparently, it was worse for my aunt, she was the last of seven..."  
  
"Oh, right...that must have sucked."  
  
"Jenny, you said that you never knew who your father was, right?" Jon piped up suddenly.  
  
"Yah...My mum doesn't even remember him- what's that got to do with anything?"  
  
"Lots...did you ever think that your dad, whoever in the world he is, might have been a wizard?"  
  
The expression on Jenny's face told him that, No, she had not thought of that.  
  
Neither had the others.  
  
"If he's a wizard..." said Eddie, trailing off.  
  
"I think should owl my mum,..." said Jenny slowly.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
MWAHAHAHA!!! They're starting to figure things out!!!! But it will be awhile yet before either of them knows!! Teeheehee!  
  
Thank you too all of you who reviewed! *Distributes large quantities of e- chocolate to reviewers* ^_^ :D:D:D:D:D:D:D 


	12. Late night wanderings

Summary: Jenny Hansen has always known she's been different from other children. Something powerful resides within her. She doesn't know who her father is. All her mother remembers is a passionate green-eyed stranger. When a mysterious letter appears for an enchanted school, Jenny wonders if this is the answer to her questions.  
  
Disclaimer: I ADMIT IT!!! I WROTE IT ALL!!!! IT'S MINE!!!!!MINE YOU HEAR??? MIIIIINNNNEEEEEE!!!!!!  
  
St. Mungo's hospital for magical maladies and injuries would like to state that the above disclaimer is fictious and the author has been taken away for treatment.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Heir of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 13: Among the shadows  
  
Jenny spent a good amount of time that night mulling over what she should put in her letter to her mum. Finally deciding, she sat down across from Eddie at one of the Gryffindor common room tables and pulled a sheet of parchment towards her and dipped her quill into her inkwell.  
  
Dear Mum,  
  
Gryffindor won the Quidditch match against Slytherin! I'm so happy; I basically grabbed the snitch from right under Avery's nose, HA!  
  
Jenny proceeded to give a blow-by-blow account of the match.  
  
...And then Avery tried to shove me out of the way, but he couldn't and I sped up and grabbed the snitch! It was so cool, because I almost didn't get it.  
  
But there's something else I want to tell you mum, I told you in my last letter that I got sorted into Gryffindor, but I didn't tell you this, the sorting hat put me in Gryffindor because it said it was ' where my blood runs'...it was the strangest thing. When Eddie, Salina, Thomas, Jon and I were talking about us being sorted, I told them about it and Jon asked me if I had ever thought of my dad being a wizard...  
  
I know it sounds a little crazy, but I just wanted to write and tell you about it.  
  
Love, ~Jenny~  
  
Jenny looked up from the letter to realize that the common room was empty. Vaguely she remembered Eddie telling her that he was going to bed.  
  
Looking at her watch, she realized that it was well after 11 O'clock. Sighing, she sealed her letter in an envelope and debated whether she should nip up to the owlery and hope no one caught her or just go to bed. Jenny wanted this letter to reach her mother as soon as possible, so she took her letter and exited the portrait hole.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Harry shook his head.  
  
He was feeling a little restless; two hours of grading essays had made him antsy, He couldn't concentrate anymore. He wasn't tired, no; the large mug of coffee on his desk had made sure of that.  
  
Wondering what he should do, he decided to take a walk around the castle. As he strode towards the door, he spotted his invisibility cloak draped over a chair.  
  
Grinning, Harry grabbed it and threw it over himself.  
  
He was going to do some exploring.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Walking along a darkened corridor, Jenny hugged the wall and trod quietly, she didn't want to alert Filch or his cat Ms. Norris that she was out of bed at an ungodly hour.  
  
Watching the shadows move around and the subjects of portraits sleeping was a little creepy. Everything looked different at night.  
  
Jenny turned down a corridor and pulled aside a tapestry to walk down the secret passageway behind it. Instead of ending up on the sixth floor as she had expected, she ended up on the third floor. Jenny began to feel a little worried.  
  
She walked down two corridors, through a secret passageway, through a door, up a set of stairs, down another corridor, turning left; she crept down a second staircase.  
  
Suddenly Jenny stopped. There was no point in not admitting it, she was hopelessly lost.  
  
Hugging the shadows and moving cautiously she moved down a corridor. A loud "meow!" suddenly reached her.  
  
Turning, she could see Ms. Norris at the end of the corridor. She drew back against the wall, wishing she was invisible and staying stock still. Ms. Norris' lamp like yellow eyes raked the corridor. Seeing no one, the scrawny cat padded away.  
  
Jenny stayed still for five whole minutes after Ms. Norris had left. Gathering her nerve, she continued down the corridor, pushing open a door, she found herself in a girls bathroom.  
  
It had a musty smell and felt damp, but Jenny didn't care. She walked over to one of the sinks and splashed a bit of water on her face. Sighing, she poured a sinkful of water, took a deep breath and dunked her head into it.  
  
"Who are you?"  
  
Jenny jumped as though a live wire had struck her. Whirling around sputtering and spraying water everywhere she came face to face with the ghost of a mournful looking girl.  
  
"ACK!" Jenny yelped, jumping backwards, nearly landing in the sink.  
  
"Who ARE you?" she demanded, breathing heavily and shaking.  
  
The ghost looked highly affronted, her eyes filling with tears.  
  
"Oh, don't cry! Please! You just really startled me! Please don't cry!" Jenny begged of the ghost, sensing that it would be a disaster if the mournful ghost did start crying.  
  
Much to Jenny's relief, the ghost hiccoughed instead and surveyed Jenny through her thick spectacles.  
  
"Who are you? Are you a first year?" asked the ghost sullenly.  
  
"My names Jenny Hansen, and yah...I am a first year" said Jenny quietly "Who are you?" she asked of the ghost girl.  
  
"Myrtle, but everyone calls me Moaning Myrtle when they want to make fun of me!" Myrtle's eyes brimmed with tears. Jenny made to pat Myrtle on the shoulder but her hand went right through. Thankfully, Myrtle did not seem to notice.  
  
"Oh, don't cry, I won't make fun of you, too many people made fun of me, so I know how it feels..." soothed Jenny.  
  
The ghost named Myrtle looked at her in shock, tears completely forgotten.  
  
"You- you- won't make fun of me?" she asked.  
  
"No! Why should I?" asked Jenny, puzzled.  
  
"Because everyone does!" the ghost cried in anguish.  
  
"I don't think so...I mean, I've never even heard of you before, let alone hearing anyone make fun of you" explained Jenny.  
  
Myrtle looked glum.  
  
"No one ever wants to be my friend, not when I was in school not even after my...my...my death" Myrtle sniffed "The only people who I thought were friends left, they used to come to my bathroom all the time, now not even Harry visits!"  
  
"Harry...? As in Harry Potter?" asked Jenny curiously.  
  
The sniffing ghost nodded and continued. "He teaches here now and he doesn't even come talk to me!"  
  
Jenny raised an eyebrow.  
  
"From what I've gathered, most of the teachers are to busy to talk often, even to students," Jenny said quietly, "Why don't we sit and you can tell me your troubles?"  
  
Myrtle looked slightly disconcerted that a student was talking to her without either an annoyed or disdainful voice.  
  
Jenny sat on the floor and patted the area beside her. Myrtle 'sat' on the floor, floating about an inch off the ground.  
  
"So what's bothering you?" asked Jenny kindly.  
  
Myrtle launched into her woes; finally taking advantage of the sympathetic ear she had been offered.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
About an hour later, Jenny and Myrtle were still sitting on the floor of the bathroom, several times, Myrtle had been on the verge of tears and Jenny had comforted her. It was difficult to comfort a ghost, for you could not actually touch one without your hand going through it.  
  
But now, Myrtle was talking more freely than Jenny suspected, ever before.  
  
"And then, I said 'Ohhh, Hermione, go look in the mirror, and she did...' oh, you should have heard her scream." Myrtle told Jenny gleefully. Jenny wondered whether Eddie knew about this.  
  
"You know," Jenny told Myrtle "I know Hermione's son...He's my best friend Eddie Weasley."  
  
"Ohhh...so Ron's his father?" asked Myrtle, interested.  
  
"From what I've gathered, yah" answered Jenny laughing.  
  
"What's your family like?" asked Myrtle curiously.  
  
"My mum's really nice, she's a muggle, and she teaches school...and she's professional clarinetist. My aunt Angela's really fun and crazy, and she's getting married next summer...well, Angela isn't really my aunt, but she might as well be, because she and my mum are best friends..."  
  
"What about your father?" asked Myrtle.  
  
"I don't know who he is, mum doesn't even remember him."  
  
"Oh."  
  
Jenny caught sight of her watch.  
  
"Merlin! Look at the time!" Jenny held up her watch for Myrtle to see.  
  
It was one forty five in the morning.  
  
"I have to go to the owlery to send my letter..."  
  
Myrtle began to get this sad, dejected look in her eyes.  
  
"Don't worry! I'll come back, and maybe I'll bring my friends." Jenny told Myrtle quickly. "And if I don't come back, you can find me in the Gryffindor tower..." Jenny paused "Um...Myrtle, how do you get to the owlery?"  
  
Resolutely, after making Jenny swear that she'd come back, Myrtle gave Jenny the directions to the owlery.  
  
"Thanks Myrtle!" called Jenny over her shoulder as she exited the mildewy bathroom "I'll see you tomorrow, alright?"  
  
Myrtle nodded slightly, Jenny was happy to see that she didn't have as much of the sullen look that she had when she had first scared Jenny.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Harry crept along the darkened corridors.  
  
He felt like a student again, sneaking around under the cloak. It was fun to pretend to be a student, Harry knew it was a bit immature, but he didn't care.  
  
He remembered several times when he, Ron and Hermione had snuck out to do something under the cloak.  
  
Suddenly Harry heard footsteps behind him, with a jolt, he remembered that he had forgotten the Marauder's map back in his office.  
  
Quickly he flattened himself against the wall and turned to see who it was.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Jenny walked along the seventh floor corridor, she was still a ways away from the owlery, turning a corner, she walked along another corridor, hugging the shadows.  
  
She had gone about ten paces when something made her stop.  
  
She could feel something. Jenny shrugged, it was probably a ghost.  
  
She kept walking. Suddenly, there was a rustling sound and Jenny could feel a sudden movement a few feet in front of her.  
  
Jenny froze. Someone was there. She looked around; her eyes were drawn to the wall nearest to her. Whoever was there was pressed up against that wall. It was in a shadow, but Jenny couldn't see anyone.  
  
On an impulse she asked, "Who's there?"  
  
Nothing.  
  
Jenny crossed her arms and stared at the wall.  
  
"Come out, whoever you are, I know your there" she said irritably.  
  
The air rippled, and a man appeared and stepped out of the shadows.  
  
"Professor Potter!" said Jenny horrified. She was in big trouble now. But instead of giving her a detention and taking away house points, he smiled.  
  
"Now what are you doing out this late Miss Hansen?" he asked cheerfully, "If I remember correctly, first years aren't supposed to be out in the corridors after nine..."  
  
"Uhhh...umm...well..." Jenny stammered.  
  
"Now what may I ask are you doing out of bed so late?" Professor Potter looked at her in amusement.  
  
Jenny held up the thick envelope. "I'm owling my mum..."  
  
"Why couldn't you wait till morning?" Asked Professor Potter curiously.  
  
"Well, um...I wanted to tell her something..."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Harry peered at the person behind him.  
  
It was the new Gryffindor seeker, Jenny Hansen.  
  
She was standing in the middle of the corridor looking around. Her gaze turned on where he was standing, trying not to make any noise. She squinted and frowned.  
  
"Who's there?" She asked peering towards him.  
  
Harry jumped, surprised.  
  
She frowned again and crossed her arms.  
  
"Come out, whoever you are, I know your there!" she said irritably.  
  
Harry smiled to himself, pulled off the cloak and step forward.  
  
Jenny's accusing look turned into one of horror.  
  
"Professor Potter!"  
  
Harry almost laughed. He wondered if this was how he looked when Filch had caught him and Hermione out of bed in their first year.  
  
"Now what are you doing out this late Miss Hansen? If I remember correctly, first years aren't supposed to be out in the corridors after ten..." He asked, amused.  
  
"Uhhh...umm...well..." was the reply.  
  
"Now what may I ask are you doing out of bed so late?" Harry asked.  
  
Jenny appeared to having a fierce internal debate, after a few seconds, she held up a thick envelope.  
  
"I'm owling my mum..."  
  
Harry's curiosity piqued. "Why couldn't you wait till morning?"  
  
"Well, um...I wanted to tell her something..."  
  
"Tell her what?" Harry couldn't help asking.  
  
Jenny frowned slightly.  
  
"Tell you what," said Harry, "what if you tell me about it on the way to the owlery?"  
  
Jenny thought that over.  
  
"Okay..." she said slowly.  
  
Harry turned and began to walk towards the owlery. Jenny fell into step beside him.  
  
"So what are you writing your mum about?" asked Harry.  
  
"Well... mostly about the Quidditch match..." said Jenny guiltily.  
  
Harry smiled.  
  
"You played very well, I doubt I could have done better." Harry said graciously. He couldn't think of much else to say, the girl was extremely talented.  
  
"Anything else?"  
  
"Well, remember at the Quidditch tryouts when I said I didn't know who my father was? Jon came up with the idea that he might be a wizard because of something the sorting hat said."  
  
"Oh? And by Jon, you mean Mr. Golden of Hufflepuff I presume?"  
  
"Yah... It had a big debate with itself whether I should be put in Gryffindor or Ravenclaw, because I fit both descriptions perfectly, but then it put me in Gryffindor because it 'was where my blood ran'... it said the same thing to Salina too...but she didn't want to be put in Slytherin, so it put her in Ravenclaw instead."  
  
Harry was hit with the memory of the hat debating whether to put him in Slytherin.  
  
"The hat wanted to put me in Slytherin too." He heard himself saying.  
  
Jenny looked at him in shock.  
  
"You? In Slytherin?"  
  
Jenny had never heard of "Harry Potter the hero" before Eddie had told her the story. But what she had seen of him, as Harry Potter the Professor; he seemed anything but a Slytherin type personality.  
  
"It wanted to, it turned out though it was because of Voldemort's curse that made it want to."  
  
"Oh...that makes sense," said Jenny thinking it over.  
  
Harry wondered why he had just told her that. It had taken him forever to tell Ron and Hermione, and now, he was telling it to a student he barely knew.  
  
He glanced at Jenny, who was now staring pensively out of one of the windows they were passing.  
  
They turned up the stairwell to the owlery. Reaching the door, Harry pushed it open.  
  
The owlery was extremely drafty. Above him in the rafters, he could see owls perched, a few fluttered in and out the windows.  
  
Hedwig fluttered over to him and landed on his shoulder, nipping his ear.  
  
"Sorry Hedwig, I don't have anything for you tonight..." Harry fished an owl treat out of one of his pockets and gave it to the snowy owl. Hedwig took it and rose up to the rafters.  
  
A beautiful silver owl soared past him and landed on Jenny's arm.  
  
"Hey Athena," said the small girl softly, stroking the owls head "I got a letter here for mum..." Jenny fastened the letter to Athena's leg and walked over to the window. The owl hooted and nipped Jenny's ear affectionately.  
  
"Thanks for getting Todd" said the girl softly to the owl, apparently forgetting that Harry was there, "Charlotte is alright thanks to you."  
  
The owl seemed to incline its head, it hooted and took flight, disappearing rapidly into the night.  
  
Harry decided not to ask who Todd or Charlotte were.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
A quarter of an hour later, Harry and Jenny stood in front of the fat lady.  
  
"Now," Harry said seriously, "Don't go wandering around the castle at night, no matter how important your letters are..." An amused smile played across his face, "I doubt other teachers will be as merciful and I have had my own run-in's with Mr. Filch when I was your age." He finished the sentence with a slight scowl on his face.  
  
"Yes, sir" said Jenny dutifully.  
  
"Call me Harry, plain old Harry, no grandiose titles attached please." Harry deadpanned.  
  
"Okay..." said Jenny with raised eyebrows.  
  
"Now, I think it would be a good idea for you to return to bed Miss Hansen."  
  
Jenny nodded and said the password for the Gryffindor tower. The fat lady's portrait swung open.  
  
"Goodnight Miss Hansen" said Harry  
  
"Goodnight Prof-...er...Harry" said Jenny cautiously.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
As Jenny entered her dorm room, she could see that Aimee, Roxann and Arianna were already asleep (Aimee with her head at the wrong end of the bed.) Walking over to her own bed, she caught sight of her reflection in the floor length mirror that was on the wall.  
  
She stepped closer and examined her reflection.  
  
It's a coincidence... she thought. I don't look like him too much do I? Ah well...  
  
With that, Jenny changed into her nightgown and fell into bed.  
  
She was asleep before her head hit the pillow. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Ok, I know that was a rather pointless chapter. But it's still a chapter:D:D:D  
  
I know all of you are wondering in the back of your mind, "Why is Harry so OOC?" (Out Of Character, for all you people who still havn't figured out FF.net lingo) Reason 1: He's older. We all change when we get older, it's a fact of life.  
  
Reason 2: In the first chapter, he was rather drunk, If your drunk, you don't exactly think straight or make wise decisions. Muggle alcohol also has odd effects on wizards. Reason 3: He's been through a lot. He's learned to keep things like his temper on a short leash. Reason 4: Fate tipped the scales. This will be explained later.  
  
Next Chapter: A day in the life of the muggle world...  
  
Anyways, THANX FOR READING :D:D:D:D 


	13. A day in the life of the muggle world

Disclaimer: ::blushes:: you guys know that my last disclaimer was a little odd, I think it was the combination of too much chocolate and lack of sleep………anyways………you guys know that the Potterverse doesn't belong to me alright? I'm just borrowing it………

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Beta: Realmwalker: Tonks didn't apparate directly to the Hogwarts grounds. 

Kady Rilla Wholi: Thanks for the review!

FieryPhoenix: Yah…I noticed that mistake after I posted it……… the proper one is supposed to be 9pm………And thanks for reviewing!!!

 ~~~~~~~~~~~

Heir of the Phoenix 

Chapter 14: A day in the life of the muggle world

Genevieve awoke to a tapping sound on her window. Sitting up, she could see that it was Athena hovering in the air outside her window, a thick roll of parchment attached to the owl's leg.

Getting out of bed, she opened the window and Athena fluttered in and perched on the back of Genevieve's desk chair and stuck her leg out to be relieved of her burden.

Genevieve couldn't quell the feeling of excitement that came from getting mail, especially if the mail was delivered by an owl and was from her daughter. The roll was thicker than usual. 

Jenny's letters had been getting thicker and thicker. Sometimes, Genevieve was mildly jealous of her daughter, getting an opportunity like that. Genevieve had been doing research on the wizarding world. Normal libraries were of no help, she had ended up visiting Diagon alley once more and buying some books from the fascinating bookstore, Flourish and Blot's.

Some of the books they had in there were amazing (and dangerous) so Genevieve had to rely on the young clerk who worked there to keep from her opening books that shouldn't be opened.

Genevieve shook herself out of her thoughts.

She beckoned Athena, who took to the air and landed gracefully on her shoulder. 

Walking down the stairs, she went into the kitchen and began to make herself breakfast. Genevieve offered the silver owl some bacon, which Athena took gratefully and soared out the window into the early morning light.

Genevieve sat down at the table with her hash browns, bacon and eggs and unrolled it. It was _long_. 

_Dear Mum, _

_WE HAD A QUIDDITCH MATCH TODAY AND GRYFFINDOR WON!!!!!! It was soooo cool, Amanda, Emma and Steven are awesome chasers, we were ahead 120 points when I caught the snitch. The Slytherins only had 20 points; they'll be out of the running for the Quidditch cup if they lose against Ravenclaw._

Genevieve read through the long, very descriptive play-by-play commentary of the game. It sounded action packed- something Angela would like.

Genevieve continued reading with interest. 

_………And then Avery tried to shove me out of the way, but he couldn't and I sped up and grabbed the snitch! It was so cool, because I almost didn't get it._

_But there's something else I want to tell you mum, I told you in my last letter that I got sorted into Gryffindor, but I didn't tell you this, the sorting hat put me in Gryffindor because it said it was ' where my blood runs'………it was the strangest thing. When Eddie, Salina, Thomas, Jon and I were talking about us being sorted, I told them about it and Jon asked me if I had ever thought of my dad being a wizard………_

_I know it sounds a little crazy, but I just wanted to write and tell you about it._

_Love,_

_  ~Jenny~_

Genevieve froze and re-read the last part of the letter. 

 _If I had ever thought of my dad being a wizard………_

An explosion unleashed itself upon Genevieve's mind; flashes of things that were of the past and yet to come invaded her conscience, sounds and feelings permeated her being……… overwhelmed, Genevieve sank to the floor.

_A red haired teenage girl with yelling at a boy with black hair, _

_Another teenage boy, similar to the first one, running from something, _

_The same boy, looking up at something big. _

_The redhaired girl, in a boat, approaching a large and magnificent castle. _

_A wedding, happy and joyous;  _

_The red head, backing away from an unseen threat, terror etched into her face. _

_A youthful brown haired woman, holding the body of another. _

_A woman, facing a man, holding the figure of a child, _

_A man, with messy black hair and weary lines carved into his face, standing in front of a council, _

_The same man, younger; standing in front of a group, his wand raised, his bright green eyes seeing all……… _Images would flash by, accompanied snatches of voice and sound.

"Leave him alone!………" 

_"You lot- get into the woods and stick together………"_

_"Never leave anyone behind………"_

_" 'Yer a wizard Harry………"_

_"Oh shut it Padfoot, you're just jealous………"_

_"Not Harry! Please………have mercy………take me!"_

_"Cedric! On your left!"_

_"Genie! Take her and run!"_

_"No! Don't die, you can't die now!………."_

_"One thing that always stays with us is love………"_

_"We meet again Tom………"_

_"Harry, We're all in this together………"_

Echoes, Images, sounds, feelings………it was almost too much……… 

She'd been able to catch names; 

"_Lily! Take Harry and run!_"

"ROBERT! WHERE ARE YOU?_"_

"Harry!"

"James………"

"_JENS!_"

"Prongs!"

"Potter!"

"Harry, don't waste time………"

Harry………_Harry………_

A new memory sprang to life in Genevieve's head. One from the Palm Tree, almost twelve years before………

"The name's Harry, what's yours?" 

Harry………The man's name was Harry……… 

Genevieve pulled herself to her feet and stared out the window at the sunrise.

Of all things……… 

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two hours later, Genevieve was standing in front of her 5th grade class. Genevieve no longer taught kindergarten, when she had left on her maternity leave eleven years previously, another teacher had taken her post. 

When she had came back, she had been unwilling to take away Flora's job. So, she took the open 5th grade post. She didn't regret it. 

Genevieve however didn't feel like following the normal lesson plan today. 

"Today class, we will not be doing math………" She paused to allow the cheers to subside, "We will………" Genevieve was cut off by a knock on the door.

Going to open it, she found Dr. Anna Covington, the headmistress, standing there. Behind her was a nervous looking boy with blond hair.

"Hello Genevieve," said Dr. Covington cheerfully.

"Hello Anna," said Genevieve, smiling.

"I brought you a new student, just moved here from Surrey………" She stepped aside and motioned to the boy behind her. The boy gulped and looked up at her nervously. He had light blue eyes and a solid build.  

Genevieve smiled. 

"Come right on in, what's your name young man?"

"Ummm……… Riley Dursley, Ma'am………" He answered.

Genevieve nodded.

"I'm Miss Hansen."

Genevieve ushered him into the class.

"Class, we have a new student, Riley Dursley, please, everyone say hello to him,"

A chorus of hello's echoed through the room.

"Now Riley, you can take that desk right there next to Alan………"

Riley nodded and sat down silently. 

"Now class, as I was saying, we will not be doing math today, instead I want to ask you all a question, who here believes in magic?" 

A few of the students raised their hands tentatively. Riley's hand, however, shot into the air. 

Genevieve noted this. 

"Lydia, why do you believe in magic?"

"Because the tooth fairy still comes and gives me money for my teeth!"

A few students snickered; Genevieve silenced them with a sharp look.

"That's an excellent reason Lydia, Jimmy, why do you believe in magic?"

Jimmy, a small wiry looking boy shrugged.

"I dunno, I just do, Magic just sounds cool"    

The majority of the class nodded and murmured in agreement.

"How about you Riley? Why do you believe in magic?"

Riley cleared his throat slightly. All the class looked at him eagerly, to see what The New Kid would say.

"Well………It was something that happened to me dad really………"

"Let's hear about it,………" said Genevieve kindly, though to tell the truth, she was insatiably curious.

"Well………Me dad, he doesn't like anything that ain't ordinary, he's just like Granny and Grandpop, they don't like anything that ain't normal either, so one day, this crazy man appears out of nowhere in our living room, 'right in the middle of the coffee table, Me dad was reading the paper, me mum was sewing and my sister and I were watching television, well, the man appeared like that," Riley snapped his fingers, 

" And he stood on the coffee table and yelled at me dad, 'Dudley! GET YOUR KIDS OUT OF THE HOUSE!' And me Dad looked at the crazy man, and looked at us and at the crazy man again and yelled 'get out of my house!' and the crazy man looked at me dad and said 'You'll regret that Dudley' and disappeared………that night our the house burned down."  

Riley stopped and looked around the class. The class looked back at Riley. 

Riley shrugged and sat down, his face reddening.

"No way that could happened!" blurted one of the boys from the back of the room. Riley sank low into his chair.

A few people murmured they're agreement.

Riley's flushed cheeks darkened even more.

Genevieve peered at the newest member of her class and strode over to his desk. She bent down to look him in the eye, which was quite low, because of how far Riley had sunk down.

"Riley, I believe you, what you say is true, don't let anyone make you think otherwise……… though I would advise you to only tell that story to those you really trust" She murmured quietly to him, so none of the rest of the class could hear. 

Riley looked up at her in surprise, his eyes were filled with wonder and admiration.

"Just one thing Riley, what did the man who appeared in your living room look like?"

"Well………He had black hair………and an odd scar………"

Genevieve smiled.

"Ah" was all she could say.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Charlotte skipped up the front walk of Todd's house. 

Pushing open the front door, she stepped into the foyer and froze. Loud voices were coming from the living room. Charlotte tiptoed over to the living room entrance and peeked in. Two people were in there, Todd and an older woman with short curly brown hair.

They were arguing about something.

"Todd, I need to keep my rear end covered, I can't exactly advertise that I'm in the Order!"

"Well, do something! We can't let Nott get away this time!"

Charlotte sneezed before she could stop herself. The woman jumped and both she and Todd peered towards the door. 

"Charlotte!" exclaimed Todd.

The woman just looked at Charlotte in surprise, she turned to Todd.

"I thought you had anti–muggle and privacy wards on this house Todd." 

"I do, Charlotte here, however can get through them because I let her."

The woman raised an eyebrow.

"My best friend goes to Hogwarts," piped up Charlotte, "So I know about magic and stuff already." Todd had explained to her about how wizards didn't advertise themselves to the general public.

The woman relaxed slightly.

"Tonks, I'd like you to meet Charlotte, Charlotte, this is Nymphadora Tonks, a colleague of mine."

"Better known as Tonks and only as Tonks," said Tonks firmly, "I don't know what possessed my mother to call me Nymphadora." 

"Even at forty, she still hates it,………" muttered Todd under his breath to Charlotte.

"You shut it!" joked Tonks, chuckling, "Unless you want me to tell the world what your middle name is!" 

Todd looked at her in mock-horror. 

"You don't even know what it is," he said.

"Oh, yes I do! It's Bartholomew."

Todd performed a very dramatic and painful death "No………not that name, not that name!" he wailed as he fell to the floor. Charlotte and Tonks burst out laughing. 

Todd sat up and winked at them.

"Bartholomew" whispered Charlotte. 

Todd looked at her in astonishment and promptly 'died' again. 

"Traitor" he whispered from 'dead' lips.

Tonks, grinning madly, walked over and prodded Todd with her foot. 

"Ack!" Todd got to his feet quickly, "I'm hungry, how about some lunch?"

"How about I make it?" said Tonks "I don't exactly trust your conjuring skills………I remember the _last _time you made food for a group of people………"

Todd grimaced. 

"Yes, I remember that too………" 

Todd strolled into the kitchen and from the sound of it, was summoning cups from the cupboards. 

CRASH. THUMP.

Tonks and Charlotte jumped and raced into the kitchen. 

Todd was standing there, he body rigid, his eyes glazed. His wand and a bunch of shattered glass was on the floor.

"Todd?" said Charlotte fearfully.

Todd began to speak, not in his normal cheerful voice, but in a harsh raspy one. 

_"The powers of the heir of the Phoenix_

_have begun to awaken,_

_Within her, the blood of two houses._

_One of bravery, one of intellect._

_Their heirs united, becoming one. _

_The heir of the phoenix will vanquish _

_the heir of the snake._

_She will not be alone."_

Todd jerked and blinked forcefully.

"Merlin, what happened?" he asked, his voice normal again. He looked puzzled at the mess on the floor and scratched his neck. 

"Hey Tonks," He said turning to face them, "Did I black out………or………something………" He trailed off upon seeing the looks on their faces. 

"Todd………do you have any Seer blood in your family?" asked Tonks tentatively. 

"Seer blood? Yah, my grandmother was one."

"Well, now you've obviously inherited it."

"What?"

"The powers of the heir of the Phoenix have begun to awaken,

Within her, the blood of two houses.

One of bravery, one of intellect.

Their heirs united, becoming one. 

The heir of the phoenix will vanquish the heir of the snake.

She will not be alone," recited Tonks quietly. 

"I said _that?"_

"Yah………you did," said Charlotte, who was rather confused. 

"I'm going to Dumbledore." Announced Tonks, "I'll be back soon."

And with a crack, she was gone. 

"Where's she going?" asked Charlotte.

"Hogwarts." Said Todd in an odd voice.

"Oh………what just happened?" 

"Apparently, I just prophesied something important,"

"Prophesied?" asked Charlotte again, now extremely interested.

"For told something………what exactly did I say?"  

Charlotte told him. 

"Fascinating………" commented Todd shakily.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hello all you reviewers! Thanks for reading chapter 14!!!!!!!!

***distributes e-candy to everyone*** THANKS AND ENJOY!!!!!!

    __

  


	14. New thoughts

Disclaimer: I don't own the Potterverse, I'm just borrowing it and I hope to return it in good shape………

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`

Heir of the Phoenix 

Chapter 15: New thoughts

Nymphadora Tonks appeared on the edge of the Hogwarts grounds, her purple cloak billowing around in the wind. 

40 or so years of age and a war had not ruffled this woman's spirit. Though her eyes had gone from their brilliant blue to dark and brooding, courtesy of her metamorphagus powers and her concern. 

Tonks strode up the front drive of Hogwarts School of witchcraft and wizardry. 

Opening the big front doors, she strode up the marble staircase. A few students watched her curiously. 

She marched up a few more flights of stairs and down a corridor to a large stone gargoyle.

"Sugar quill" 

The gargoyle leapt aside. Tonks took the moving stairs two at a time, reaching the top, she rapped smartly on the door. 

"Come in," said Dumbledore's ancient voice. 

Tonks pushed open the door. 

"Ah, Tonks; how good to see you what brings you here today?"

"Albus, We've got something new on our hands."

"What do you mean Tonks?" asked Dumbledore quietly.

"Do you know Todd Lorelei?"

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow.

"I know him quite well actually, I was the one who recruited him for the Order." He replied. 

"Ah, I see………" Tonks glanced around the room, and gestured to the pensive "May I borrow this for a second?" she asked.

"By all mean, yes."

Tonks strode over too the pensive and put her wand to her temple. A strand of silver slid out from where she pulled her wand away and slid gracefully into the pensive. She stirred the silvery fluid with her wand and a small shadow of a figure rose out of the pensive. It began to rotate slowly, and speak. Todd's harsh tone of voice was hard on Tonks ears, as she was used to the cheerful one he used normally. 

   _"The powers of the heir of the Phoenix_

_Have begun to awaken,_

_Within her, the blood of two houses._

_One of bravery, one of intellect._

_Their heirs united, becoming one. _

_The heir of the phoenix will vanquish _

_The heir of the snake._

_She will not be alone."_

Dumbledore peered at the small rotating figure of Todd intently.

"What does it mean Albus?" asked Tonks.

"The meaning is quite obvious Nymphadora," said Dumbledore softly "But how that meaning came to be, I do not know."

"What does it mean 'The blood of two houses' and 'their heirs united becoming one?'"

"That is quite simple really," Continued Dumbledore, "_The blood of two houses, _each of the founders has a bloodline, I know two of the heirs, though most are unaware of who they are._"_

"So, by two houses, they mean the descendants of two of the four founders." 

"Precisely"

"Which two?" 

"I believe that is also quite obvious Tonks, _One of bravery and One of intellect_………The prophecy is talking about the heir of Gryffindor and the heir of Ravenclaw."

"Who are the heirs?" asked Tonks

"As I said, I only know of two of the heirs, The heir of Slytherin was an ambitious boy I once knew by the name of Tom Riddle-"

"Voldemort?" said Tonks with great effort, her eyes wide. 

"Yes, Lord Voldemort is the heir of Slytherin, I also know who the heir of Gryffindor is, and I believe you know who he is also, and Harry Potter is the heir of Gryffindor."  (A/N: Lily and James' home was called Godric's Hollow………)

Tonks jaw dropped. 

"Harry's the heir? Does he even know? He doesn't have any children!" 

"Harry is the heir, though he doesn't quite know it exactly, I only knew when he pulled that sword out of the sorting hat," Dumbledore gestured to the sword on display, the name _Godric Gryffindor _was quite visible beneath the hilt, "I told him that only a true Gryffindor could have pulled that out of the hat, I neglected to mention by true Gryffindor, I meant Gryffindor by blood, for I was not certain at the time whether the sword really showed Harry's heritage." 

Dumbledore gazed thoughtfully at his ceiling for a few seconds before returning his wise blue eyes back to Tonks.

"About the lack of children, that is what puzzles me Nymphadora, is that Harry does not have any children, much less a daughter, as it is mentioned in the prophecy, also, we do not know who the heir of Ravenclaw is, because the Ravenclaw bloodline is rather obscure." 

"Shouldn't we tell Harry about this?" asked Tonks.

"Yes we should………" Dumbledore stood and supporting himself with his cane, made his way to the fireplace, taking a fist full of bright powder, he tossed it into the fire. The flames turned bright green.

"Harry," he said clearly, "could you come to my office at once?" 

A few minutes later, a knock sounded on the door of Dumbledore's office before opening. The tall figure of Harry Potter stepped into the room and shut the door behind him. 

"Ah yes, hello Harry………"

"Hello Albus," said Harry, smiling, "And Tonks! What in the name of Merlin are you doing here?" 

"Tonks is here because she came across something very interesting, and that something concerns you."

"Oh?" said Harry curiously "well then tell me about it then."

Dumbledore cleared his throat slightly.

"Harry, do remember in your second year when you pulled that sword out of the hat?" asked Dumbledore.

"Quite clearly actually, why?"

"Do you remember me saying that only a true Gryffindor could have pulled that sword out of the hat?" 

"Yes I do," 

"Well, I meant something by that, I did not mean true Gryffindor by heart, I meant true Gryffindor by blood"

Harry did not look surprised. Instead he nodded and said "I guessed that, in my seventh year, when Hermione came running to me with a book in hand, She had been in the library researching for something or another and she saw a book on the Founders and took it out, and she read it, and she came across a part where it described the sorts of things that the Founders had left behind for their heirs and families. Gryffindor's was his sword." 

"Ah," said Dumbledore calmly, "I see you have figured it out, but this matter does not reside solely on you being heir, there has been another prophecy, while it does not concern you directly, but more you contributed to it………"

Harry's eyes had gone very hard at the mention of the word prophecy, but relaxed slightly when Dumbledore said it did not concern him directly. 

"Who was the Seer?" asked Harry

"A young man by the name of Todd Lorelei, He is one of the newer members of the Order……… Tonks and a young muggle girl witnessed it." 

"Todd Lorelei……… I have heard the name before, but I don't believe I have met him………" commented Harry.

"He was the Ravenclaw Quidditch captain five years ago." 

"Ah yes, that must have been where I heard his name."

"I believe you should hear the prophecy Harry."

"Alright."

Tonks swirled the silvery substance in the pensive and the small figure of Todd rose once more. The harsh voice sounded even worse now. 

_"The powers of the heir of the Phoenix_

_have begun to awaken,_

_Within her, the blood of two houses._

_One of bravery, one of intellect._

_Their heirs united, becoming one. _

_The heir of the phoenix will vanquish _

_the heir of the snake._

_She will not be alone."_

When Tonks had removed her gaze from Todd once more and moved it to Harry, the expression on his face was somewhat priceless. 

Harry was speechless. 

_What in the name of Merlin? _Was the phrase being repeated in his head over and over. 

"Harry?" asked Dumbledore.

Harry shook himself out of his funk and blinked. 

"I'm just a little confused………" said Harry, "If that prophecy said what I think it said………" he trailed off into deep thought. 

"Harry………" said Dumbledore rather carefully, "Have you had any………_relationships………_ recently?" 

Harry grimaced a little. The lack of 'relationships' he had going for him was a little embarrassing, if anything……… Ron teased him mercilessly about it.  

"No." 

Tonks stifled a laugh. Harry glared at her. 

"I haven't had any _relationships _with anyone Albus, you could say that I was too busy………" said Harry.

"Do we even know how old this kid is?" asked Tonks, "She could be anything from an infant to a teenager………"

_Ack! A teenager………? _ Harry jumped at the thought. __

"Though probably not………" said Dumbledore wryly, catching the look on Harry's face. "All we know so far is that you have a daughter of undetermined age and whoever her mother is, she the heir of Ravenclaw."  

"One other thing Albus, it says that my daughter, whoever the name of Merlin she is, as 'Heir of the Phoenix', will defeat the heir of the Snake………" 

There was a taught silence. Tension suddenly filled the room. 

"Albus, could He come back yet again?" asked Tonks quietly, her voice filled with a mix of fear and worry. 

"No," said Harry firmly, "He was gone. Dead."

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Harry found himself in his office twenty minutes later. 

He could not think straight. 

I have a daughter……… but who is she? Where is she? What about her mother? 

Harry buried his head in his hands and strained his mind. 

_When? When was the last time? _ 

_A long time! _Jeered one corner of his mind. 

_Shut up you, _said the three other corners, _let us think!_

Harry thought that it was rather sad that he did not have just _two _voices in his head, but four. 

_"Shut up! All of you………" _said Harry out loud, _"let ME think."_

The voices shut up. 

Harry sat there for most of the night. 

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Eddie choked on his porridge when Jenny told him her adventures of the previous night. 

"You did all _that?"_ said Eddie wonderingly "take _me _next time!"

"Of course," said Jenny happily, "We can go see Myrtle tonight!"

Eddie raised an eyebrow. 

"You never said anything about meeting Myrtle" said Eddie incredulously.  

"I didn't? Oh, I must have forgot………"said Jenny absently, yawning.

Eddie raised an eyebrow slightly.

"Did you tell Salina, Thomas or Jon about this?" he asked.

"Nope, not yet."

"Oh."

"But I'm going to………" said Jenny, peering across the hall, "hey look, here come Thomas and Salina now………"

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The five of them met in a small classroom on the fourth floor. Jon was breathing rather heavily, as though he had run a mile. 

"What happened to you?" asked Salina.

"Ms. Norris………and to think I actually used to like cats, my mum is mad about them, but that cat is _evil………_" said Jon hurriedly, "She caught me when I was walking up some stairs……… I ran away though, before she could get Filch"

The rest of the group nodded in sympathy. All had had their own run-ins with Filch and Ms. Norris. 

"So, we're meeting a ghost tonight?" asked Thomas, somewhat incredulously as they left the classroom and tiptoed down the hallway. 

"Yep, her name's Myrtle………she's a bit of a miserable character really………thought we might cheer her up a bit." 

"I heard a fourth year talking about her," commented Salina dryly, "Very sensitive isn't she?" 

"Very is an understatement" said Jenny, peering around a corner to check if the coast was clear. 

"So, Where is that bathroom anyways?" asked Eddie. 

"'Round the corner and down the hall" said Jenny, disappearing around the corner. 

They reached the door and Salina pushed it open.

The dank musty smell slapped them in the face. Jon wrinkled his small nose and Eddie grimaced. 

Slowly, Thomas eased the door shut behind them. The group could here some gurgling and sniffing from one of the stalls. 

"Myrtle? You there?" 

The ghost of the downtrodden girl appeared almost instantly out of a stall. Through her rather fogged up glasses, the ghost-girl surveyed them rather blandly. 

"Hello again Myrtle" said Jenny kindly, her green eyes mingled with slight concern and sympathy. 

"Your Ron and Hermione's son aren't you?" said Myrtle curiously, eyeing Eddie's fiery Weasley hair. Eddie gave a non-committal shrug. 

"Yah, I guess I am," he replied, eyes rolling slightly. Thankfully, Myrtle did not notice and could not take offence, for her attention was now focused on Salina.

"Who are you?" asked Myrtle. 

"Salina Malfoy," said Salina, as if she dared Myrtle to comment on her unwanted heritage. Myrtle, though being a ghost and somewhat paranoid, was not stupid and wisely did not. 

She turned to Thomas and Jon, both looking rather out of place in the musty and heavily shadowed girl's bathroom. 

Sensing her unspoken question, Thomas cleared his throat and introduced himself.

"I'm Thomas White," he said, gazing levelly at Myrtle. His blue eyes were rather dark and stormy. His spiky hair made him look taller than he was. 

"Jonathan Golden" chipped in Jon; making a stab at cheerfulness, but failing rather miserably and retreated into nervousness. His rosy cheeks visibly darkened ever so slightly in the gloomy dimness of the chilly lavatory.

There was a heavy silence. 

"So this is a girls bathroom?" said Eddie nervously, making an odd sort of attempt at conversation. 

He was met with raised eyebrows.

"What!?" He asked, flustered, "I thought they would be decorated in pink!" 

Even Myrtle fell on the ground laughing at that. In retrospect, the comment was probably not even funny to others, but Eddie would be teased for awhile about his preconceived notions on the decoration of girls bathrooms. 

Salina hauled herself off the floor and sat on one of the sinks. Jon leaned against the wall, brushing a strand of brown hair out of his eyes. Jenny had come to know this as a habit of his. Thomas sat on one of the sinks next to Salina, absently turning the water taps on and off. 

Eddie still stood in the middle of the room, somewhat embarrassed, his ears bright pink in the moonlight that filtered through one of the cracked and grimy windows. 

"Oy!" said Thomas suddenly, bending down over a sink, squinting at one of the water taps, which shone dimly in the moonlight, "look at this!"

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

OoOoOo… so what did dear Thomas discover? I think many of you will have theories. 

See that little blue options tab on the left? It says "submit a review"………could all of you hit the little 'Go' button, PLEASE????

THANK YOU ALL!!!!  

   


	15. Vortex and a Slytherin

Disclaimer: I don't own the Potterverse, I'm just borrowing it and I hope to return it in good shape...  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Lindiel Eryn: I know there's a big space and it mystifies me as to the reason...As for the Chamber, you'll see in this chapter.  
  
PBlegacy: Thanks! I tried to put some twists in mine that I havn't seen in other next gen. Stories.  
  
Wytil: Wind will be Jenny's only element, but I was thinking of winding the other elements into other characters...  
  
Kady Rilla wholi: To quote a friend, I didn't hint it, I jumped up and down and screamed it :P I'm not sure about the parseltongue thing.  
  
Siriusrocks23: Thanks!  
  
Jupiters-galaxy: I'll keep going, definately...  
  
FieryPhoenix: And I hope to have Jenny clue in sometime soon.  
  
*hands Alec aka Realmwalker, my beta reader plate of e-cookies*  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Heir of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 16: Vortex and a Slytherin  
  
"Oy!" said Thomas suddenly, bending down over a sink, squinting at one of the water taps, which shone dimly in the moonlight, "look at this!"  
  
He pointed to something on the side of one of the taps.  
  
Jenny peered around him, for looking over his shoulder was not an option, due to her short stature. Salina bent over from the sink she was sitting on and Eddie and Jon collectively peered over Thomas' other shoulder.  
  
Myrtle floated off above the toilet stalls, 'sitting' cross-legged in mid- air, watching the group of first years with a mild interest.  
  
"Hey, that looks like a snake..." Commented Eddie, squinting at the small- etched mark.  
  
Thomas leaned down so he was pretty much eye to eye with the small engraving.  
  
"It is a snake!" He said, backing away so Jenny and Jon could see better.  
  
Myrtle had drifted closer, looking even more interested. She hovered above the heads of the first years, smiling mysteriously.  
  
Jenny felt something odd stir inside her when she saw the snake. Little flashes of thought and voices echoed through her mind, too garbled to make sense of, but all she was left seeing was a pair of yellow eyes and a sense of dread.  
  
"Myrtle," she asked, in a rather choked voice, "Do you know anything about this snake?"  
  
Myrtle drifted down to where she was looking Jenny in the eye.  
  
"I do," she said, attempting to sound neutral, but her ghostly eyes were alight with something Jenny could not identify.  
  
"What sort of things do you know?" Thomas butted in.  
  
"A lot of things" replied Myrtle.  
  
"Well, are you going to tell us?" asked Eddie.  
  
"Maybe..." Said Myrtle lazily, "maybe not."  
  
I keep seeing things..." said Jenny faintly.  
  
The others looked at her in alarm.  
  
"Seeing things?" asked Jon, his brow wrinkled, "what sort of things?"  
  
Jenny closed her eyes and tried to make the slightest bit of sense of the little images whirling about her head. She felt dizzy.  
  
She could see a shadow of a...snake...and she watched as it slithered up to a girl...who was in a bathroom stall... a different image appeared... Another girl with red hair and a deathly pale look about her, lying on a stone floor...and image of a boy with a sword, looking up at something looming above him... Another boy, his eyes cold, glared at something unseen.  
  
Whispers of words in a strange language that she half understood flitted through her mind.  
  
Snake language.  
  
Eddie caught her before she fell and held her steady with a firm hand on her shoulder.  
  
"You all right Jens?" he asked, his warm brown eyes concerned. Thomas, Jon and Salina peered at her, also concerned, but puzzled.  
  
Jenny seized one of the images in her mind and concentrated on the image of the second girl. In her mind's eye, Jenny focused on the girl's deathly pale face. She realized that it was familiar.  
  
She pulled herself away from the stream of images, words and feelings tied to this little space in a musty girl's bathroom.  
  
Looking at Eddie, she recognized bits and pieces of the girl's face in his own. Squinting at his face, which bewildered him somewhat, she whispered the name that she had heard in the depths of the odd language she had heard.  
  
"Ginny."  
  
"Come again?" said Eddie, his eyes widening slightly and his grip on her shoulder relaxing. It tightened again when he felt Jenny sway slightly on her feet.  
  
"Ginny...there was a girl named Ginny..." choked out Jenny raspy voice. "She...she was afraid of... of something in a book..."  
  
Eddie stared at her in surprise, as did Salina. Thomas and Jon remained confused.  
  
"You see Ginny?" He asked, his eyes worried.  
  
"Yah...Ginny..." Jenny said, concentrating on the memory "She looks like you Eddie..."  
  
Eddie nodded slightly, starting to understand.  
  
"Jenny..." He started "I think you see my Aunt Ginny..."  
  
Jenny shook herself out of the memory. Her green eyes stopped being slightly clouded and returned to their sparkling clarity.  
  
"Your Aunt Ginny?" She asked, curious.  
  
Eddie nodded; it was starting to come together in his mind. The Chamber. He remembered some of the stories that dad and Harry had told him. About the chamber of secrets; the basilisk; Tom Riddle controlling aunt Ginny... They had never actually told him where the entrance was. Harry had said that knowing Eddie's personality; he would be curious enough to find it.  
  
Eddie had forgotten about the stories till now, but it was all starting to make sense. He was in the same room as the chamber, and he was certain that the snake etched into the tap was some sort of signal...  
  
He remembered another detail about the chamber. To get in, you needed the ability to speak parseltongue. So much for him getting into it.  
  
Salina bit her lip.  
  
She remembered her father telling her and Derek about the Chamber of Secrets being opened in his second year. He had almost gloated about how Voldemort and his father had manipulated Eddie's Aunt Ginny. It was about then when she had seriously started to hate her family and their past.  
  
I'll never be like them. I won't lower myself to that level.  
  
Salina felt small amount of guilt of what her family had done to Eddie's but it couldn't be helped now, that was in the past and this was the present and she could try to make up for it.  
  
Jenny had begun to examine the little snake etched into the tap in earnest.  
  
"So, what did you hear about the Chamber from your dad and Harry Eddie?" She asked after he explained the story of his aunt to her, Thomas and Jon. "I read a bit about it in Hogwarts, a history, but next to nothing really stuck,..." she had continued.  
  
"It's supposed to have had this monster - a basilisk- in it, but Harry killed it when he saved my aunt and Myrtle here" - He nodded over his shoulder to the ghost - "was killed by it, weren't you Myrtle?"  
  
Myrtle looked torn between bursting into tears or beaming with pride.  
  
"Yes..." she said slowly, her lip quivering.  
  
Thomas, Jenny and Jon alternated between staring disbelievingly at Eddie to staring at Myrtle in sympathy and back to Eddie in disbelief.  
  
"What exactly is a basilisk?" asked Jon curiously, "is it some sort of dark creature?"  
  
Salina answered.  
  
"The basilisk is a giant serpent, born when a chicken egg is hatched beneath a toad. It has these big yellow eyes that can kill you just by looking at you and really huge poisonous fangs and they can live for centuries, like the one in the chamber did."  
  
Eddie nodded.  
  
"You see," he said "there was four founders of the school, and the four houses were named after them, but Salazar Slytherin didn't like teaching magic to people who didn't come from pureblood families, so he got into a fight with the other founders, and he built the chamber and left the school."  
  
Salina explained about how it had been opened in her father's second year, Eddie finished the explanation with the account of how his own father and Harry had killed the basilisk and rescued Ginny.  
  
Myrtle had been adding her two cents worth when they heard a loud 'thump' and a crash outside in the hallway. Some muttered cursing filtered through the door. A cat's meow was heard.  
  
Jon put his ear to the door.  
  
His face paled as the group heard a familiar but hated voice, muffled by the door, say; "Damn suits of armor! Now Mrs. Norris, where are those little children?"  
  
'It's Filch!' he mouthed, though none of them needed to be told, as they all recognized his voice immediately.  
  
"What do we do?" whispered Eddie, as Filch's footsteps grew closer.  
  
Myrtle had drifted so that she was sitting on top of one of the toilet stalls and watching the five first years with interest.  
  
Thomas grabbed Jon and Salina and dragged them into one of the stalls and perched precariously on a toilet. Jenny and Eddie did the same on the next stall over.  
  
All of them held their breath as the door of the bathroom rattled and was pushed opened.  
  
Myrtle, from her vantage point on top of the stalls, watched as Filch stuck his head into the bathroom as Mrs. Norris wound about his legs, her lamp like eyes peering into the bathroom.  
  
Eddie started convulsing slightly and Jenny looked at him alarm. He was holding his nose and his eyes were bulging out. He was trying desperately not to sneeze.  
  
Filch seemed to stand in the doorway for an eternity. Eddie continued to jerk about from trying not to sneeze. Jenny couldn't hear anything from the next stall over.  
  
There was a sigh and Mrs. Norris meowed.  
  
Mrs. Norris could smell students, but she hated going into this particular room. It brought back horrible memories of big yellow eyes and a reptilian smell.  
  
She meowed once more and wound herself about Filch's legs, then started to trot down the hall away from the bathroom. Filch took this as a sign that he was looking in the wrong room and followed the mangy tabby down the corridor, shutting the bathroom door behind him.  
  
Eddie was able too hold it in for another 6 seconds before he went into paroxysms of sneezing. As a result, his foot slipped off the toilet seat into the toilet bowl and he toppled into Jenny, sending them both crashing to the floor.  
  
"OooF!" Eddie heard Jenny wheeze as they landed, but he was helpless to get off of her, as his foot was firmly lodged in the toilet bowl.  
  
Salina peered over the partition between the two stalls and started giggling.  
  
"You two look ridiculous!" she gasped as Thomas and Jon pushed her out of the way so that they could see.  
  
Salina went around and pushed the stall door open and tried to haul Eddie to his feet.  
  
"Gah! Your heavy Ed! But how can you be so heavy when your so skinny?" she demanded.  
  
"It's all muscle." Replied Eddie, grinning.  
  
They heard Jenny snort and her muffled voice saying "As if!" vehemently.  
  
Thomas pulled Eddie's foot out of the toilet that was trying to flush itself (and Eddie's shoe) and they pulled the Gryffindor pair to their feet.  
  
Jenny flopped against the wall, taking great gasping breaths.  
  
"You completely winded me Eddie!" she forced out, "Lose some of that muscle mass before you squash someone next time!"  
  
They all laughed recklessly, relieved to have escaped Filch's wrath.  
  
Suddenly, Jenny paused and cocked her head slightly.  
  
"Do you hear that?" she asked.  
  
"Hear what?" asked Jon as they fell silent, listening.  
  
Faintly, a grinding noise could be heard. Suddenly, it rose in volume and the five friends turned towards the sinks. One of the sinks was starting to lower into the floor as a large hole in the wall was uncovered.  
  
As one, they pulled they're wands out of their pockets and spread out in a semi-circle around the slowly widening hole, shrinking back into the shadows, where it was hard to be seen. Inside, they could hear scuffling and a few muttered curses.  
  
"It's the entrance." Whispered Eddie fervently, "the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets!"  
  
Suddenly, a pale skinned, dark-haired boy tumbled out of the hole, hitting the ground and straightened up.  
  
He jerked slightly when he looked up to find five wands leveled at his face. His eyes widened slightly and his jaw dropped open a fraction before his composure restated itself.  
  
His steely grey-blue eyes narrowed as he started reaching for his own wand.  
  
"Not so fast Mister!" said Jenny, her green eyes darkening dangerously and her hair crackling, "One false move and I'll disarm you before you can twitch!"  
  
Eddie took a closer look at the boy. He looked old, seventeen or eighteen. He appeared to be Hogwarts student, but his robes and uniform looked slightly different. He bore the Slytherin crest and colours. Eddie also noted that he wore a head boy badge. Eddie gulped. Their head boy this year was in Ravenclaw.  
  
The boy smiled slightly at Jenny's threat.  
  
"You? A silly little Gryffindor, disarm me?" he said lazily.  
  
Jenny's eyes narrowed.  
  
"Yes, I disarm you" She said firmly, looking him straight in the eye. The boy gazed back at her. Eddie felt his stomach turn. This did not feel right, something was wrong. Something was seriously wrong.  
  
He glanced at Salina. Her grey eyes stared at the older boy steadily, her wand leveled at his throat. Eddie knew she knew a few more curses and hexes than she let on.  
  
His gaze turned to Jon, who was pale and shaking slightly, but resolutely pointing his wand at the Slytherin boy.  
  
Thomas stepped forward.  
  
"Who are you?" he demanded coldly.  
  
"That it none of your concern." Said the Slytherin boy, his voice sending shivers down even Jenny's spine.  
  
Jenny gazed at him.  
  
She knew him in some way. She didn't know how. He was not to be crossed or taken lightly.  
  
"It is our concern, considering that you just exited the Chamber of Secrets, the secret room of Salazar Slytherin," said Jenny quietly.  
  
The boy's lip twitched and Jenny felt his emotions darken and his body tense.  
  
"How do you know about the Chamber of Secrets?" he snarled, "It doesn't exist!"  
  
"It does!" said Eddie loudly, "My father and his friend have been in it!"  
  
The Slytherin froze and his eyes darted around at each of them, examining them closely.  
  
"Who are you?" he asked.  
  
"We will tell you when you tell us." Said Jenny firmly, raising her wand higher, "We have patience to wait." She continued, glancing at each of her friends in turn, who nodded in agreement.  
  
"Very well then..." the Slytherin said.  
  
He jerked his hand into his pocket and in less than a second, his wand was out and leveled at them.  
  
"Drop it," said Jenny forcefully.  
  
The boy grinned lazily.  
  
"Why should I?" he asked, "You are but a bunch of young weaklings."  
  
"Drop it." Repeated Jenny, a slight draft ruffled her hair as one hand slipped behind her back.  
  
"How about...No?"  
  
"I'll force you too."  
  
The Slytherin laughed out loud.  
  
"What's your name Gryffindor? And you are what? A first year? You think you can take on me? The greatest student that Hogwarts has ever seen?"  
  
Jenny paused for a second, looking uncertain and her friends watched her anxiously. Then she seemed to draw herself up.  
  
"My name is Jenny Hansen" she said quietly, "My friends are Thomas White, Edward Weasley, Jonathan Golden and Salina Malfoy."  
  
The Slytherin glanced sharply at Salina, then back at Jenny and he smirked.  
  
Suddenly, he brought his wand up to bear and shouted an incantation.  
  
A bright flash of turquoise light leaped at them.  
  
Only to be pushed back and extinguished by a maelstrom of wind and chaos.  
  
"AHHHHH!!!!" The Slytherin yelled as the roaring wind threw him against the wall.  
  
He slumped as the wind died, stunned by the impact.  
  
Jenny lowered her hand and smiled slightly as the wind faded and disappeared.  
  
Salina, Jon, Eddie and Thomas gaped at her in shock. Thomas scratched his head and glanced at the Slytherin who was slowly returning to consciousness. He looked back at Jenny.  
  
"How did you-?" he started to ask.  
  
"Take his wand." Said Jenny firmly.  
  
Thomas nodded and picked up the Slytherin's wand from the floor, when looked expectantly at Jenny, who shrugged.  
  
"I don't know what I did...I mean...I know what I did, but I don't really know how I did it...it's just something I can do..." offered Jenny in the way of an explanation.  
  
"You can start vortex's in girl's bathrooms," commented Salina dryly.  
  
"Umm...yah."  
  
"Cool." Said Thomas, who nudged the Slytherin boy with his foot. The guy groaned and lifted himself to his feet.  
  
Jenny kept her wand trained on him as he glared at her with a mixture of rage, intense hatred and what Jenny swore was a tiny amount of fear mixed with surprise.  
  
"A weakling?" she said coolly, "I think not."  
  
"Who are you?" He snarled.  
  
"I told you already, you didn't return the favor!" Jenny retorted.  
  
"My name is one you will fear forever," Said the boy maliciously.  
  
Salina and Eddie snorted in unison.  
  
"Been there, done that," said Salina, laughing slightly, "And the last guy who said that exact same phrase has been gone for like...about...14 years or so?"  
  
The Slytherin glared at her, his eyes unreadable and his expression dark.  
  
"I am your worst nightmare." He said coldly.  
  
"Worst nightmares are always followed by sweet dreams."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Now who is this Slytherin?  
  
An e-cookie to whoever guesses right.  
  
I'm going to make Heir of the Phoenix into a trilogy of Jenny's first, fourth-fifth and seventh years. I have the plot for the second installment worked out, but the third one is still up in the air.  
  
Feel free to ask questions!!  
  
Review!!!!! 


	16. Revelations

**Disclaimer: *hopes that JK Rowling team of lawyers will leave me alone because I don't own Harry Potter.***

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Heir of the Phoenix 

Chapter 17: Boy from the past

 "Worst nightmares are always followed by sweet dreams," retorted Jenny darkly. 

The Slytherin seemed to think of something. 

"What year is this?" he demanded.

 "It's December 1st 2012," replied Thomas curtly. 

The Slytherin stared at him, appearing too surprised to speak. 

 "So, who are you?" demanded Jenny, "and what year did you think this was?"

"My name is………" he paused, thinking carefully. "My name is Tom Riddle." 

"You!" cried Eddie, starting to hex the Slytherin, but Salina beat him too it.

"PETRIFICUS TOTALUS!" she screamed. 

Riddle jerked as the spell hit him, then went rigid and keeled over.

Waves of outrage and anger flitted across his face.

"We have to go get Dumbledore!" cried Eddie, already running for the door. 

"You guys stay here and stand guard!" ordered Jenny as she sprinted after him. 

Salina, Thomas and Jon exchanged glances as the two Gryffindors disappeared from sight at a run. 

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Eddie was several paces ahead and Jenny was struggling to keep up to him. 

"Where is Dumbledore's office?" she gasped, stopping.

"There's a big gargoyle," said Eddie hurriedly and looking around, "Dad told me about it and I remember seeing it somewhere around here!"

They took off again down another corridor, searching frantically for a large stone gargoyle. 

Rounding a corner, they ran up a flight of steps and turned to the right down a wide corridor, glancing down side corridors. Eddie was still several paces ahead and rounded another corner. 

Jenny skidded to a halt as she heard a muffled 'whuf' sound and a crash. 

"Professor Snape!" yelped Eddie and Jenny felt the blood drain from her face. She peered around the corner to see Snape pull himself to his feet, swearing. Eddie scrambled to his feet and shank against the wall. 

"Weasley!" Bellowed Snape, his face livid, "What the hell are you doing out of bed! 50 points from Gryffindor and a week's detention! Come with me Weasley, We are seeing Professor McGonagall about this matter!" 

"But Professor!" cried Eddie frantically, "I need to see Professor Dumbledore! It's really important!" 

"I don't care! You are coming with me!" Snape sneered at him and Eddie glanced over his shoulder at Jenny, his eyes pleading. Snape followed his gaze and saw Jenny ducking back into the shadows.

"You there! Get out here NOW!" He shouted.

Trembling, Jenny stepped forward. 

"Hansen! Another 50 points from Gryffindor!" snarled Snape, no longer angry, but thoroughly enjoying himself at scaring the two Gryffindor first years.

Taking a deep breath, Jenny managed to mumble that they really needed to see Dumbledore.

"Oh no you aren't! You are coming to Professor McGonagall's office with me!" 

"But Professor!" cried Eddie. "It's urgent!" echoed Jenny.

"Why the hell would you want to bother the Headmaster at this hour Weasley?" 

"I…There…" stammered Eddie. 

"What about you Hansen? Is there a reason?" snarled Snape, glaring at her. If looks could kill, she would have been a molten puddle. 

"Tom Riddle" Jenny whispered.

"What did you say Hansen?! Speak up!"

"Tom Riddle" Jenny managed to choke out.

"I can't hear you! Another ten points from Gryffindor!" Replied Snape in a silky voice. 

"Tom Riddle! He's here!" Jenny shouted. 

Snape froze. 

"WHAT?" He yelped, "Impossible!"

"He's here!" cried Eddie, "He's in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom!" 

 Snape glared at the two of them. 

"Follow me," He said curtly, taking off at quick pace, his black cloak billowing out behind him. Eddie and Jenny had to jog to keep up. 

"The headmaster's office is down that corridor," said Snape, pointing down a hallway, "the password is 'Sugar quill', I am going to the second floor bathroom."

Jenny and Eddie nodded and tore down the corridor to the stone Gargoyle. 

"Sugar quill" panted Eddie and the gargoyle leaped aside. The friends took the steps two at a time and reached the door to Dumbledore's office. They could hear murmured voices within and Eddie reached up and rapped the knocker a few times. 

The voices inside fell silent and then they heard Dumbledore's soft voice call "come in."

Eddie pushed open the door and stepped timidly into the room. Jenny followed and shut the door behind her. 

Dumbledore was sitting at his desk, wearing a purple velvet dressing gown. In one of the armchairs opposite him, sat Professor Potter. 

Dumbledore's and Professor Potter's eyes widened as they took in the two panting first years. 

"Mr. Weasley! Miss Hansen! What in the name of Merlin are you two doing out of bed at this hour?" exclaimed Dumbledore. 

 Eddie and Jenny froze, trying to figure out how to tell their ancient headmaster that a very evil boy was magically paralyzed in a bathroom three floors below.    

"Eddie?" asked Professor Potter curiously, "Why are you here?"

"Tom Riddle! In Moaning Myrtle's bathroom!" blurted Eddie hurriedly. 

Dumbledore blinked and his white eyebrows shot up. Professor Potter's face drained of colour and his mouth dropped open into an 'O' shape. 

Dumbledore recovered quickly and with surprising agility for someone of his age, he was on his feet and making for the door of his office, leaning on his walking stick. 

Harry jumped to his feet and followed the old headmaster. Jenny and Eddie followed the two men mutely down the moving staircase. 

Upon reaching the corridor of Myrtle's bathroom, Harry rushed ahead and pushed open the door of the bathroom………

  ~~~~~~~~~~~

Genevieve blinked and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. 

Glancing at the tiny clock on the computer, she discerned that it was 6 am on Saturday morning. 

Sitting up, she realized that she had fallen asleep in front of the computer, her head resting in her arms on the desk. An exhaustive internet search had yielded nothing on Harry. She had looked through everything from dating websites to find your old classmates websites to missing person sites.

Nothing. 

But then all she knew was what he looked like and his first name, but that wasn't too helpful. 

Sighing, she turned off the computer and made herself a cup of strong tea. 

She stared out the kitchen window, mulling over the visions that had brought her to the realizations of his- Harry's - name. 

She'd have to go to Diagon Alley. Surely they kept public records about that sort of thing. She'd have some explaining to do about being muggle, but they would at least let her look. 

If this Harry was really a wizard, as Jenny's theory and her own research had hinted at.

Genevieve took a long shower and brushed her hair, pulling it back into a simple braid, which hung down her back. She pulled on a long jean skirt and a sweater, ate breakfast then walked out the door, swinging her purse onto her shoulder as she strode down the busy London street towards the underground station a few blocks away.  

Genevieve never bothered taking her car to the vicinity of Diagon alley. She knew what street it was on, but it usually took her several tries to find the Leaky Cauldron, considering the muggle deterring charms on the place. 

Finally finding it, she strode in through the grimy door of the pub. Tom, the old barkeep, waved to her genially and summoned a waiter to let her out the back. 

The waiter led her around the back and opened the archway. 

Genevieve thanked him and strode down the alley towards Flourish and Blott's. The place wasn't that crowded yet, as it was only 8 am. 

The bookstore was mostly empty, save for the desk clerk and a few customers. It was a different, significantly older clerk then the one that she usually saw. Perhaps he was an owner. He seemed old enough, with black hair heavily streaked with grey and a short beard. 

He was rummaging around the counter where the large old-fashioned cash register was situated. 

She stepped up to the counter and cleared her throat nervously. 

He glanced up, straightening his blue robes. 

"Oh, hello, what can I do for you?" 

"Um…Hello… My name is Genevieve Hansen and I was wondering where wizarding public records are kept…"

The clerk gave her an odd searching look, his dark eyes puzzled. 

"They'd be at the Ministry, I presume…"

"Oh…" Genevieve flushed slightly, "I'm looking for someone." She explained.

"I'd owl the Ministry, I know they have public records, though I'm not quite sure which department… say, who are you looking for? There's an off chance I might actually know the person"

"A man I knew, I think he's a wizard; but all I know is his first name."

The clerk looked her in a new light. 

"You're a muggle?" he asked curiously.  

"Um… yes," replied Genevieve nervously, "My daughter attends Hogwarts."

"Oh, what house?" Asked the clerk off handedly, shuffling some receipts about. 

"Gryffindor."

"I was in Ravenclaw myself, ah well, so who is this chap your looking for?" 

"All I know about him is that his name's Harry and what he looks like." Explained Genevieve. 

"Harry eh? What does he look like?" asked the clerk. 

"Black hair, green eyes… he's pretty tall and he's got an odd scar on his forehead, sort of like a lightning bolt-" she trailed off when she saw the look on the clerk's face. 

"Is something wrong?" she asked, puzzled. 

"No… no, nothing's wrong… Merlin's beard… if my ears heard correctly, you just described one of the most famous wizards in the history of our world – Harry Potter, the man who defeated the Dark Lord." 

"What?!" Gasped Genevieve, her blue eyes widening in surprise. 

 The clerk wheeled around and pulled a book of the display behind the counter, riffled through it, then held it out to Genevieve. She took the book and glanced at the cover. 

_ The rise and fall of the Dark Arts, 2nd edition._

She flipped to the page the clerk had marked and nearly dropped the book. 

 _Important figures in the fight against the Dark Lord.  _

Below the title was a large colour photo, moving like the other wizarding pictures that Genevieve had seen. In it was _him. _Harry.

He was standing alone, the upper half of his body visible in the picture. In the background was a huge castle. His untidy black hair fell over his vivid green eyes and the scar was barely visible. He looked at her from his picture and nodded slightly, a small smile playing across his lips.

Below the picture was a caption. 

_A recent picture of Harry J. Potter, the famed 'Boy who lived' and the defeater of He-who-must-not-be-named._

Genevieve looked up at the clerk, who was regarding her solemnly.

"It's him… Oh my god, it's him…" she whispered, trying to grasp the information. 

"I don't really know what to say ma'am. For a few seconds, I though you belonged in St. Mungo's for not knowing who he was, but it seems that you have a reason, being muggle and all." He paused. "I know a few witches who would kill to meet him," he finished wryly. 

Genevieve nodded faintly and stepped aside as an elderly witch hobbled up to pay for a heavy looking spell book. She set the _Rise and fall of the Dark arts _on the counter a little ways away from the cash register and began to read. 

_Harry J. Potter is one of the most powerful and esteemed wizards of our time. His first encounter with fame was when Lord Voldemort (he-who must not be named) murdered his parents, Lily and James Potter; then turned his wand on Harry, who was just over a year old at the time. _

_According to Albus Dumbledore (see pg. 367) The Headmaster of Hogwarts_ _and the supposed leader of the mysterious 'Order of the Phoenix' (p.390), the Killing curse rebounded upon Lord Voldemort due to ancient blood magic that came into play because Lily Potter, his mother, sacrificed her life for her son. _

_Lord Voldemort was apparently reduced to a near-spirit form and fled to Albania._

_Harry escaped the encounter with a curse-scar in the shape of lightning bolt. He was raised by muggle relatives of his mother's and started Hogwarts in 1991._

_Harry encountered the Dark Lord a second time during his first year at Hogwarts and defeated him once more, thwarting Voldemort's quest for the Philosopher's stone (p.387)._

Genevieve scanned through the rest of the chapter, reading about Harry's various accomplishments. Her eyes alighted upon the last paragraph.

 Harry Potter is said by his friends and co-workers to be a rather reserved individual and dislikes the public eye upon him. He is no longer an auror and currently teaches Defense against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. 

Genevieve gasped audibly and the clerk looked up from the transaction with the elderly witch. When she had gone, he looked across the counter at her. 

"Found anything?" he asked. 

Genevieve nodded, then pulled her wallet out of her purse and flipped it open to where she had a small school picture of Jenny from about a year before. She turned the book around and placed Jenny's photo next to the moving one of Harry. 

"What do you think?" she asked the clerk cautiously, "That's my daughter Jenny…"

The clerk scrutinized the two pictures closely. 

"Merlin's beard…" he murmured under his breath, looking back up Genevieve. "I'll be damned, they're nearly spitting images of each other!" he exclaimed. 

He stroked his beard contemplatively. 

"I'm not too sure what to say, ma'am," he said quietly. He paused and extended his hand. "I'm Frederick Blott, co-owner of Flourish and Blott's," he said, smiling. 

"I thought you might be one of the owner's," replied Genevieve, smiling slightly, "All your clerks are pretty young looking." 

Mr. Blott chuckled. 

"Yes, they are, sometimes I envy them." He joked, laughing. 

"How much does this book cost?" asked Genevieve curiously.

"16 galleons." Answered Mr. Blott.

"Hmmm…" Genevieve dug around in her purse for the leftover wizarding money that she had from the last time she had visited the alley.

She only had 14 galleons. 

"Could I give you some of my own money? I know it's something like 2 and a half pounds to a galleon."

Mr. Blott shrugged. 

"Sure, never know when muggle money might come in handy. In my youth I had to take the underground a few times because I was too drunk to trust myself to apparate."

Genevieve wasn't quite sure what apparating was, but decided that it could be the equivalent of driving drunk if you did this 'apparating' while intoxicated.

Smiling, she paid for the book and thanked Mr. Blott. She walked home and spent most of the day sitting on the couch in the large family/TV room reading The Rise and fall of the Dark Arts. She learned several unsettling things about the wizarding world's past. 

Around six O'clock, she put the book down and set about to make dinner, wondering whether it had been a wise idea to buy that book. 

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 Thank you to all my reviewers! And thank you to all the future reviewer's!!!!!!

      


	17. Mystery

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. It doesn't stop me from loving him though *winks*

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Heir of the Phoenix 

Chapter 18:

Upon reaching the corridor of Myrtle's bathroom, Harry rushed ahead and pushed open the door of the bathroom, colliding with a figure running out of it. 

Reacting without thinking thanks to his auror training, he shouted, "STUPEFY!"  There was a thump as Tom Riddle was knocked unconscious and hit the floor. 

Snape strode out of the bathroom, looking livid and stanching blood from a cut on his forehead with his hand. In his other hand, his wand was held at ready. He was swearing profusely, but looked relieved to see Harry and Dumbledore. 

"What happened?" asked Professor Dumbledore, staring at the unconscious form of Tom Riddle.

"The bastard threw off the body bind curse that Miss Malfoy put on him just as I arrived," said Snape heavily, "I caught him wrestling his wand back from Mr. White." 

"Is Thomas alright?" asked Jenny frantically, her expression worried. 

"No, he's not." Answered Snape curtly. 

Jenny and Eddie pushed past the three adults into the bathroom. 

Salina was sitting on the floor, cradling Thomas' head with tears leaking from her grey eyes. Jon was sitting next to her, holding one of Thomas' hands and looking on helplessly. Thomas was a pasty white colour, the side of his face was bruised and a trickle of blood leaked from his mouth. 

Jenny and Eddie ran to them. Thomas was unconscious, but Jenny felt a heavy weight lift from her heart when she saw that his chest was rising and falling almost imperceptibly. He was still alive. She felt for a pulse, which was what Aunt Angela had taught her to do if she saw someone was hurt. It was weak, but steady.

Professor Potter strode into the room, his green eyes ablaze with emotion and his face hard. It softened slightly when he saw the five friends grouped together on the floor. He noted that Myrtle was watching them from her vantage point above the toilets. She nodded to him, then disappeared through the ceiling 

"I'm going to be taking Mr. White to the hospital wing," he said, drawing their attention, "You may accompany him if you wish."

He conjured a stretcher and levitated Thomas onto it. The four friends followed Harry out the door, past Professors Dumbledore and Snape and Tom Riddle, who was stunned and tightly bound with thick cords and undoubtedly had at least a dozen charms and spells on him, to keep him in one place if he happened to rouse himself.

Professor Potter led them to the hospital wing, placing Thomas on one of the beds and going to rouse Madam Noel, the Hogwarts Matron. She was a plump thirty-something witch with brown hair, warm brown eyes, a ready smile and an outgoing personality.

Jenny, Eddie, Jon and Salina stood silently around Thomas' bed as Harry returned with Madam Noel, who gasped in surprise when she saw Thomas, then quickly set to work with healing the superficial injuries and running diagnostic spells. 

"What happened?" she demanded.

"Tom Riddle punched him and he flew into a wall," answered Jon timidly.

Madam Noel was about to ask who Tom Riddle was when Harry stepped in and explained the rest of the story and the significance of Tom Riddle's name. Madam Noel gulped audibly and paled. Harry knew that she was a muggle-born. 

The diagnostic spells started turning up results and Madam Noel frowned. 

"Was he hit with any spells?" she asked, turning to the four children.

Both Salina and Jon shook their heads. 

"His wand kind of flashed when he hit the wall though," said Salina quietly. 

Madam Noel nodded and walked into her office, returning with a potion, which she tipped down Thomas' throat with a bit of difficulty. 

"I'll be back, I must go talk to the Headmaster," said Harry, turning on his heel and disappearing out the door with a swish of his black cloak.

Madam Noel turned to the silent friends staring at her hopefully. 

"You may sit with him tonight, come and tell me if anything changes."

"Will he be alright?" asked Jenny.

"He should be himself in about a week." Replied Madam Noel, who disappeared into her office. 

 Salina and Eddie pulled four chairs over and they sat silently, waiting for Thomas to wake up.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Harry strode back down towards Myrtle's bathroom, to find Myrtle waiting for him in the corridor. 

"Professor Dumbledore told me to tell you that they took Riddle to his office and that you should meet them there," she said solemnly. 

"Thanks Myrtle," replied Harry and he started walking at a brisk pace to the stone gargoyle. 

"Sugar quill" 

It sprang aside and Harry climbed the moving staircase. From Dumbledore's office he could hear voices. 

Pushing open the door, he saw that Riddle was bound to a chair and still out cold. 

Albus, Minerva, Snape and Rosa were already there, looking grim and talking in low voices. The portraits of the previous headmasters, Phineas included, were talking amongst themselves. (A/N: Rosa is Prof. Mariotte, the charms teacher)

They stopped when Harry entered. 

"What are we going to do with him?" asked Harry.

There was a reigning silence. 

"First, we must find out how he arrived here," said Albus quietly, "Severus, do you have any Veritaserum?" 

Snape shook his head. 

"No, I do not" he answered, his voice cold. 

Albus nodded, "Then I guess we shall have to question him without it," he said calmly. He turned to the unconscious Riddle and pointed his wand at him. 

"_Enervate"_

Riddle stirred and groaned slightly. 

His dark eyes snapped open and darted around the office. He gaze settled on the five Professors, who were at him gravely. He only recognized Dumbledore, who he tried to sneer at, but it ended up being a twisted grimace. 

"Hello Tom," said Dumbledore calmly, "It's been awhile."

Harry noticed the portrait of Armando Dippet frowning at Tom darkly, his nose wrinkling in distaste. 

"Professor Dumbledore," stated Tom coldly, "You're still alive?"

"I am," said Albus, his face expressionless. Harry and the others remained silent. Tom glanced at them sharply. Harry was forcibly reminded that the boy in front of him was an ambitious seventeen years old, very different from the Man-who-was-not-quite-a-man that he had faced nearly eighteen years ago.  

"I suppose you want to ask me how I got here," said Tom, smirking. 

"Yes, we do want to know." Replied Albus, speaking for them all. 

Tom stared at teachers's face in turn, wondering how he had affected each of them in his plans. This was the future after all. He was drawn most to the man standing to the right with the hair as black as his own. The man had glittering green eyes, his hair seemed chronically messy and under his fringe, Tom noted that the man had a thin lightning bolt scar. 

Tom concentrated on the man and he noticed that the man winced almost imperceptibly. Increasing his concentration on the man, he felt a formidable wall loom up on this plain of perception. The man with the scar was obviously skilled at occulemency, but he was still wincing slightly. 

Tom glared at the man, who glared right back at him, his green eyes ablaze. Tom noted with disgust that he could not break through the mental shield that the man had put up around his mind. 

"Who are you?" Tom asked. 

"That is none of your concern," said Harry sharply, his eyes going harder. Tom realized that they looked familiar. An image of the stubborn girl with messy brown curls and the same hard green eyes and thin face came to mind. They had identical expressions and features. She must be his daughter… And she had introduced herself as Hansen… 

_Hmmm… if the girl is Jenny Hansen, her father should be a… Professor Hansen… _Thought Tom, smirking to himself. 

"I think I know your name," he announced smugly. A ripple of surprise crossed the man's face and the three professors to his left shifted uncomfortably. Dumbledore gave him a searching look. 

"You know Professor Hansen, it would be a shame if anything – unfortunate – happened to that daughter of yours…" said Tom lazily, sneering. His expression faltered when he saw the waves of confusion and surprise cross the five professor's faces.

"What in the name of Merlin are you talking about?" demanded the professor with the sallow skin and dark greasy hair.

Tom turned sharply to the man with the scar, "You name is Hansen is it not?" he demanded, kicking himself mentally for his foolishness.

"No, that is not my name," said the Professor with the scar, his face puzzled.

Tom caught his gaze and dug into it, finding the man's mental shield had a few cracks in it that were rapidly being sealed. Tom discerned that the professor was telling the truth about his name. 

"Stop trying to break my shields Tom," said the Professor out loud, glaring at him, "You never have and you never will"

"I've tried before?" asked Tom smugly as Dumbledore shot the professor a warning look. The professor glanced at Dumbledore as if to say _I know what I'm doing._

"So, you're saying we've met?" said Tom pointedly. 

"Yes Tom, Many times."

"When?" asked Tom, taking on a mockingly innocent tone of voice. His dark eyes boring into the professor's green ones. 

"Many times," said the Professor darkly, "More times than I can count on one hand, Tom and after this, I don't plan on seeing you again."

"What are you going to do with me then? Kill me?"

A wave of emotion swept across the room.

"No," said Dumbledore, stepping forward, "We will not kill you Tom, Time and Fate have been disturbed and need to be set right. You need to tell us how you got here and we will send you back. One way or another, you will tell us Tom…" The last few words hung in the air as though they had been written there and preserved. Tom could feel the undercurrent of the threat.  

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jenny felt her eyes flutter open as something next to her shifted.   

Her backache suddenly asserted itself and she slowly sat up to find Thomas watching her blearily through half closed eyes. He was still pale and was having trouble keeping his eyes open. 

Jenny glanced around quickly. Eddie was lying on the next bed over, having sat there and keeled over when he had fallen asleep. Salina was on the chair on the other side of Thomas' bed, her head resting against the side of Thomas' pillow. Jon was sitting in another chair, his head tipped back and snoring lightly. A grey line was visible on the horizon through the window.

She turned back to Thomas and found him trying to speak.

"Wa…" he choked out raspily, "wa…"

"What is it Thomas?" she asked, worried.

Thomas gave up trying to speak and made a faint motion with his hand. Jenny gave him a perplexed look. He did it again. It was the motion that one took when one took a sip out of a cup.

"Oh! Water?"

Thomas nodded faintly. 

"Okay, I'll go get you some water…" she said, turning on her heel and heading for Madam Noel's office. She was about to knock when it opened and Madam Noel bustled out in a nursing uniform and hat. 

"Madam! Thomas woke up and he wants something to drink…"

Madam Noel smiled.

"I was just coming out to check on you five, last time I did, you were all fast asleep… as for water…" She waved her wand and a glass of water appeared in mid-air, which she grabbed and brought it to Thomas, who drank it down greedily. 

"Thanks…" he said faintly, rubbing his head as Jenny roused Eddie, Jon and Salina. 

Salina sat up and grinned when she saw Thomas sitting up, gulping down water. 

"You feeling okay?" she asked, concerned. 

"Yah… My head feels like some mad man took a sledgehammer to it, but other than that I'm good," replied Thomas, smiling weakly.

"Not many are lucky enough to get away from Tom Riddle feeling as though they've only been hit by a sledgehammer," said Madam Noel briskly as she strode forward with a goblet of a nasty looking bubbling green potion. 

She tipped the goblet into Thomas' mouth, which he promptly spat out again, retching. 

"Nasty!" he cried, "It's worse than my mom's cough medicine!" 

Madam Noel gave him a reproachful look and Thomas reluctantly downed the rest of it, his face contorting comically at the taste. Jenny giggled slightly and Jon nodded consolingly, His own mother liked using Buckley's cough medicine; something he loathed.

At that moment, the hospital wing door swung open and admitted Professors Dumbledore, Potter and Snape. 

"I don't know why Riddle would have thought that that was my name Albus, to tell the truth, I'm completely mystified…" Jenny caught professor Potter saying as he strode in after Dumbledore. Snape was walking closely behind them, looking like an evil bat with the way his black cloak billowed around him. 

"Professor Dumbledore!" said Madam Noel, standing up straighter as she took the goblet back from Thomas. 

"Hello Lina," said Professor Dumbledore gravely, "How is your patient?" 

"He just woke up, Albus," said Madam Noel quietly.

Professor Dumbledore nodded and moved around her, coming to a stop at the foot of Thomas' bed.

"I trust that you are feeling better Mr. White?" he asked Thomas.

"Yes, sir," replied Thomas nervously, biting his lip, while gazing apprehensively up at the ancient headmaster. Dumbledore gave him a small smile. Conjuring up a chair, Dumbledore sat down and faced the five students.    

"Now, we have several things to discuss… May I ask what you five were doing in the first floor girls bathroom?" 

The group exchanged nervous glances. 

"We…" Jon started. 

"We were visiting Moaning Myrtle," said Jenny quickly, looking guiltily at the floor, her eyes determinedly avoiding those of Professor Potter's. "I met her yesterday… and she said she was lonely, so I promised to let her meet my friends…"

"So we snuck out to go talk to her…" continued Eddie.

"After dark?" asked Dumbledore, a small twinkle in his eye.

"Yah…" 

"So what happened after you reached Myrtle's bathroom?" asked Dumbledore calmly. 

"Well…" said Salina, taking up narrative, "We talked to Myrtle for a bit… then Filch almost caught us and we hid in the bathroom stalls… and when the coast was clear, we came out and we could hear a really odd grinding noise and someone swearing. Then we looked around and saw one of the sinks disappearing! And then Tom Riddle tumbled out…"

"Out of the entrance?" demanded Professor Potter. The five friends nodded as one, understanding his unspoken question. Tom Riddle had come from the Chamber of Secrets.

But how he got there was still a mystery…

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thank you to all of my reviewers!!!

Kadi Rilla Wholi Good chapter for your story!

Anubis04I have a scene for Genevieve and Harry planned out!

Harrywandless

Kat6528

Jupiters-Galaxy

FieryPhoenix

Mjk306

Lindiel Eryn

Fiery Phoenix

Wytil

And thank you to all future reviewers *winks*


	18. Realizations

Disclaimer: Don't own, don't sue. The "Book of Time" concept belongs to Jitterbelle, It is exclusively hers and I had no part in its invention, I just love the concept. Jitterbelle is the author of "_Lily Potter and the final prophecy" _and it's two prequels. Lily Potter and the final prophecy can be found in my favorites. 

 ~~~~~~~~~~ 

Heir of the Phoenix

Chapter 19:

Suddenly, the door of the hospital wing burst open. Professor Zack Harris burst in, panting and looking as though he had just run a marathon. 

"He escaped!" 

Dumbledore's eyes narrowed. 

"Lock down the school…_Now" _he commanded, his old and weary appearance was gone, and even though he still used a cane, his eyes and demeanor were those of no weaknesses. 

Lockdown had never been a new procedure. It had gone through a dozen modifications in the millennia that Hogwarts had existed. It had been used a total of sixteen times. It had saved Hogwarts once from Lord Voldemort's wrath; perhaps it would again.

The Ancient wards responded to Dumbledore's words immediately. Dormitories were sealed in an instant and magical fields materialized throughout the school, preventing movement. The headmaster, select teachers and the ghosts were the only ones able to move through the fields. 

If there were any students out and about, magical spheres would isolate them. No alarms were used, so not to create panic. 

"Harry, where is he?" demanded Dumbledore of Professor Potter, who reached into his pocket for the trusty Marauder's map. 

"I solemnly swear I am up to no good," said Harry, taping the map with his wand. The five first years, though understanding how serious the situation, had to stifle a few giggles at the chant. 

Harry scanned the map.

"He's on the fourth floor… outside of the library." 

Dumbledore nodded and began to walk towards the door. Snape followed and Harry started to clear the map. Then he noticed something. 

In the hospital wing, there were seven labeled dots. Two were labeled 'Potter'. One was himself, the other was labeled _Jenny Potter. _

Harry nearly choked on his own spit as he hastily cleared the map. He glanced over his shoulder at the five first years, his eyes lingering on the short girl with brown hair and green eyes. 

_The Marauders map reveals only the truth. _

Something Remus had told him years ago… 

Harry turned followed Snape out of the hospital wing, his wand at ready.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~

Genevieve sat at her kitchen table, thinking.

In front of her was a pad of paper, with notes on everything she knew about the wizarding world.  

She had gone over several options of what to do. Writing a letter was pointless, as he probably got hundreds from fans already, who was to say that he ever read them? Considering his fame, he probably got several from amorous witches making offers.   

There was no way to phone, e-mail or contact Hogwarts in any muggle fashion. Genevieve wasn't even sure if she should tell Jenny about who her father was yet, considering the circumstances. Her other option was to go to Hogwarts and perhaps talk to Harry in person. 

There was a slight hitch in that plan, as she had no idea of how to get there. She knew Hogwarts was in Scotland, but Jenny had told her in one of her letters that Hogwarts was unplottable and whenever a muggle looked at it, it would resemble a moldy old ruin, if they didn't hit the muggle repelling charms. 

There was also the chance that Harry had no clue that he had a daughter and dismiss her as a desperate fan, though that was unlikely, as she was a muggle. 

Genevieve decided to take a walk to clear her mind. 

She put on her coat and walked out the door, locking it behind her and began to walk down the street. It was a grey, wet day and the concrete coloured clouds hung low over the city. It was also windy and Genevieve's brown hair blew about, caught on every stray draft that passed her. Genevieve didn't mind though. 

She walked around, uncaring of her direction or her destination. She found herself in a more rundown neighborhood and recognized it, as she knew Jenny's friend Charlotte lived a few blocks away. 

Genevieve had not seen the quiet girl for several weeks, except for a time when she had been driving home from the supermarket and had seen Charlotte skipping down the road a distance away. 

So she was more than a little surprised to see Charlotte cross the street several metres away and begin to amble down the road. 

"Charlotte!" Genevieve called and the girl stopped, waved and waited for Genevieve to reach her. 

"Hi Genevieve!" said Charlotte brightly.

"Hello Char, how are you?" asked Genevieve.

"I'm good," replied Charlotte, smiling. 

"Where are you off to?" asked Genevieve curiously, "Isn't home the other way for you?" 

"I'm going to visit Todd," replied Charlotte matter-of-factly. Genevieve's left eyebrow rose pointedly in confusion. 

"Who is Todd?" she asked, and Charlotte gave her an odd look. "You don't know who Todd is?" she asked, "I thought Jenny would have told you… I think she forgot then…" 

Genevieve remained silent, waiting for Charlotte's explanation. 

"Todd's a wizard too, Jenny and I met him a few months ago and he's really nice and he's my friend."

Genevieve grinned; perhaps this was the opportunity she needed. "Can I meet him?" she asked. Charlotte shrugged, "Sure, you can come…"

Genevieve followed Charlotte to a large rambling Victorian house on the next block that was in desperate need of a paint job. The lawn needed mowing though the flowerbeds looked as though they would be award winning, had it been July and not early December. 

Then she remembered that she had to drop off some books at the library and pay some bills. She turned on her heel to go home, only to have Charlotte grab the sleeve of her coat.

"Genevieve! Where are you going?" cried Charlotte.

"I just remembered some important errands I have to do…" replied Genevieve firmly, trying to extricate herself from the eleven-year-old's grip. Charlotte groaned and pulled Genevieve closer to the house, to the outer reaches of Todd's muggle proximity charm. Within minutes, Todd appeared at the front door and descended the front steps. 

"Who are you?" asked Genevieve, now thoroughly annoyed. Todd raised an eyebrow at Charlotte who answered his unspoken question.

"It's Jenny's mum, and those charms you put up got her."

Todd nodded and checked the street carefully, before casting a counter charm on Genevieve. Genevieve blinked and shook her head.

"What was that?" she asked.

Todd beckoned the two of them into the house and motioned them into the living room before setting about conjuring up tea.

Handing Charlotte her mug of tea with extra sugar, he sat across from Genevieve and asked what type of tea she preferred. 

"Earl Grey" 

Within seconds, a teacup appeared in midair and filled itself with Earl Grey, which Genevieve sipped delicately and thanked Todd.

"So, you are…?" asked Genevieve pointedly.

"Oh! Forgot to introduce myself, Todd Lorelei at your service…" he shook Genevieve's hand warmly. Genevieve smiled, "Genevieve Hansen," she replied, looking around the living room in fascination. A few of the portraits on the walls either gave her curious glances or small smiles.

Getting to the point, Genevieve asked if there was any way that she could get to Hogwarts. 

Todd blinked in surprise. 

"Why would you want to?" he asked, curious.

"I have some important business I have to take care of… but I have no idea how to get there…" 

Todd gave her a skeptical look.

"You could portkey there… though it would take me about two weeks to authorize it…I work at the ministry, though not in the department that handles those matters," he said cautiously. Genevieve smiled and thanked him profusely even though he replied that he couldn't promise anything. 

"When you go to Hogwarts, could I come too?" asked Charlotte hopefully.

"Maybe," replied Genevieve, knowing how much Charlotte missed Jenny.

Todd still had the odd skeptical look on his face as planning commenced. 

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Harry followed Severus and Zack down the flight of steps between the fifth and fourth floors. Dumbledore led them, leaning heavily on his cane. 

They rounded the corner into the corridor to discover Tom standing there, trapped in one of the isolating 'bubbles'. He was livid, his pale face was a blotchy red colour and his fists were clenched. 

He was almost free of it when the four of them rounded the corner and Harry ran to the front and began to try and counteract Tom's attempts to free himself. 

The Magic that lockdown used was an old brand of magic that the Founders had embedded into the very walls of the castle. Four people had had complete control over it; Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw and Salazar Slytherin. 

 ~~~~~~~~~

_Hogwarts stirred and awakened._

_It had been disturbed from its slumber. Why?_

"Lock down the school…Now" The resounding voice of Albus Dumbledore echoed through it's being. 

_The ancient protective wards were summoned immediately as the Hogwarts began to search itself for those who were astray. _

_There was the blood of three Founders present. Slytherin, Gryffindor, and a third being, the joining of two bloodlines with the essence of a third… How could this be?_

_The powers of Ravenclaw, Gryffindor and Slytherin combined into one soul, but this being was sitting idle, in one wing of the castle while the other two fight in a battle of wills._

_The bloodline of Slytherin had gone astray and sunk deeply into the dark arts. The bloodline of Gryffindor had ended the continuation of Slytherin's reign… and yet…_

_Hogwarts knew that the light would not win the battle of wills unless help was brought in…_

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jenny shuddered and a strangled yell escaped her throat as the wave hit her. It was Power…Ancient, pure and beckoning. 

It was Hogwarts, the very school itself, calling for aid. 

Jenny launched herself out of her chair and flew out the door of the hospital wing before her startled friends or Madam Noel could say a word. She sprinted down the corridors, a faint breeze trailing after her.

Jenny felt others being 'called', but only she was close enough to make a difference. 

Damn, it felt like she had just been hotwired. She hadn't even questioned the calling, only responded to it. 

Ah well, to late to think about that now… 

She flew down the last flight of stairs and barreled around the corner, skidding to a halt at the sight…

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Harry stood at the front of the small knot of teachers; he had felt the school awaken, like he had felt it once before- during his last battle with Tom Riddle. 

But the questions all came back to _How? _And _Why?_

He had been running towards the library… _Why?_

_How _did he get here in the first place?

Tom was still trying to free himself from the isolating bubble. Harry extended his force of will to counteract him, but it was slowly ebbing away. Then all of a sudden, a new force of will appeared, perhaps stronger than even his own. 

Harry's concentration nearly broke when the new presence overwhelmed him. He saw Tom's eyes widen and risked a glance behind him. 

Albus, Severus and Zack were already looking in amazement at the diminutive first year that was standing there, with her fists clenched and her eyes squeezed shut, her face the epitome of concentration. 

Young Jenny's hair was crackling with unchecked energy and there was a breeze picking up. Harry frowned as he felt the wards receding, letting Tom loose. Riddle turned to run.

"OH NO YOU DON'T!" shouted Jenny, her eyes snapping open. Harry and the other professors could only watch as a strong air current swept past them and hooked Riddle around the middle. Riddle was flipped onto his back and landed with a loud crash. Harry could hear Riddle wheezing, trying to get air into his lungs and the faint clattering of his wand rolling away. 

Harry leapt into action, bringing a foot down on Riddle's chest, his wand leveled at Riddle's nose. Riddle was still coughing, completely winded when Jenny stepped forward to pick up his wand and the other professors surrounded Riddle. 

"He won't be able to get up," said the eleven-year-old solemnly, "till I let him." 

Harry nodded and pulled Riddle into sitting position against the wall of the corridor and winced. Touching the younger version of his foe caused his scar to twinge painfully. 

Riddle, as expected, tried to move but found a wall of air keeping in one spot. 

"Let's start over once more Riddle," said Harry darkly, "How did you get here?" 

Jenny stood behind him, concentrating on keeping Riddle in one place. 

Riddle glared at Harry with a look of pure hatred. Harry glared back stonily. Riddle glanced at the girl, then back at the man before him. He knew, he _knew _they were the ones he had come forward for. They were his enemies, his adversaries.  

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Think of a number. _

Tom Riddle raised his eyebrow. Strange request…

"Seventy," said Riddle, picking a number at random. 

_Think of a place._

"Take me to the place where ones who will bring my downfall dwell_," _he requested_, _turning to the third page of the book… 

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"So?" demanded Harry, "How did you get here?" 

Riddle seemed to be considering his options. 

"There was a book…" he said slowly. 

   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Thanks to all of my reviewers! 

By the way, a Genevieve/Harry scene will be in one of the next two or three chapters… I have it all planned out!!! Heh heh heh :D

Kadi Rilla Wholi 

Hplg

Lindiel Eryn

Mjk306

FieryPhoenix

Kat6528

I extend a heartfelt thanks to Alec, my awesome beta reader.


	19. The lull before a storm

Disclaimer: Don't own, don't sue. The "Book of Time" concept belongs to Jitterbelle, It is exclusively hers and I had no part in its invention, I just love the concept. Jitterbelle is the author of "_Lily Potter and the final prophecy" _and it's two prequels. Lily Potter and the final prophecy can be found in my favorites. 

Authors note: I ran Jenny through a Mary sue litmus test. She scored a 12… on a scale of 0-15: well-rounded character, 15-22: Borderline Mary-sue 23-35: MARY SUE ALERT… restructure character and plot please!!! 35 and up: Noooo!! Die Die Die…

Anyways, I apologize for the month or so it took me to update, I was hit with a severe case of writer's block, plus my teachers dumped a bunch of projects on me. Has anybody read _The Da Vinci code_ by Dan Brown? It's like the best book ever and my group made a movie trailer for it for an English project. 

Much thanks to Alec, my beta reader. 

Now, On with the story!

 *  

Heir of the Phoenix: Fate

Chapter 20:

"There was a book…" Tom Riddle said slowly.

"A book?" replied Harry questioningly, his brow knitting. The dimly lit corridor caused shadows to play across his face, making it look as though he had aged years.

"A book… in the library…"

"That's where a lot of books are Riddle, be more specific!" snapped Harry irritably. 

"It was an old one, in the restricted section…"

_That narrows it down to about a five hundred books… _Thought Jenny blandly, still holding Riddle in place. She glanced around the dim hallway, her eyes wandering from Professor Potter to Dumbledore to Snape to the portrait of a grim looking witch who was watching the scene with an expression of worry. She turned her concentration back to Riddle.

He had given up trying to release himself from the currents of air that held his body in place. 

"Are you going to show us this book Tom?" asked Dumbledore. 

Riddle glared defiantly back at Dumbledore. Albus Dumbledore's blue eyes simply stared back at Riddle for several minutes. Jenny marveled at how calm the headmaster was. The younger version of the Most-Evil-Man-in-history was staring at him in such a way that if looks could kill, Dumbledore surely would have surely been vaporized several minutes ago and to think, she used to think the most-evil-man-in-history was Hitler. Finding out she was a witch sure changed a few of her views on things.

Suddenly, Riddle became unnerved by Dumbledore's gaze and stared resentfully at his feet. 

"Show us the book Tom," said Dumbledore calmly. 

Tom growled slightly in the back of his throat, but stood up and began to lead them towards the library. Jenny and Harry kept tight reigns on him as they entered the large room that was stuffed to the brim in books. Jenny felt strange being here in the dark. The moonlight that streamed in the windows cast eerie shadow patterns across the spines of the books. 

Tom led the way to the restricted section. He was quiet, but Jenny could see the expressions flitting their way across his face in the gloomy light. Anger. Hatred. Fear. Scorn. Despair. Resentment. All cycling across his face again and again with an alarming regularity. 

He pushed open the small gate that separated the restricted books from the ones that students were normally allowed to use. Jenny felt an eerie sort of magic emanating from the old texts. Not Dark magic… but sort of shadowed.... in a way. 

Riddle ran his finger along the spines of the second row from the top, scanning the ancient and peeling titles of the books. His hand alighted on a particularly large book and he pulled it off the shelf. He was smirking now, and Jenny began to get a sinking feeling in her stomach.

He opened the book to the first page hastily and whispered something before Professor Potter began to reach to take the thick volume away from Riddle. Tom jumped backwards slightly, causing Harry to overstep and lose his balance slightly. 

The next thing happened so fast that Jenny could only figure out what happened when she sat down the next day and puzzled it out in her head. Riddle flipped to the second page while trying to kick Professor Potter at the same time. Out of nowhere, Riddle summoned his wand with a wandless _Accio _spell and Jenny lunged for it as it flew out of her hand.

"SEVENTY!" shouted Riddle as Dumbledore darted forwards with his wand at ready, just as Tom turned to the third page.

"OBLIVIATE!" roared Dumbledore as the pink and blue tendrils began to wrap around Tom, taking him back to his past. A blue beam of light struck Riddle in the chest just as he faded out of sight into the book.         

The bright blue and pink lights of the book faded fast and everyone save Dumbledore was staring in horror at the spot where Riddle had just stood. Both Professor Potter and Professor Snape swore, Potter with the single muggle curse _"Shit", _Snape with some more colourful and obviously wizarding oaths. 

Professor Harris looked rather sick in the dimness of the library. He was pale and shivering. Jenny wasn't sure if it was from fear or the cold the perforated the library. Professor Dumbledore appeared calm, but as Jenny looked closer at his face, she saw that it was drawn into a careful mask. Dumbledore's normally twinkling blue eyes looked old and sad. Snape's eyes resembled black holes straight out of her muggle science textbook. Professor Potter's eyes were hard as diamonds and were a dark, angry green. Weary lines that Jenny had never seen before appeared around his eyes that made him look older than his thirty-five years. 

Jenny gazed back and forth between the four teachers. Her eyes darting over the faces of the professors, searching...hoping. She did not know what scared her more; the expressions of her professors or Tom Riddle himself. 

Inside of her, a childish voice wanted to know if she would be safe, protected… _Surely everything would be okay now… _but her other voice, the one that she knew was right was speaking. 

This is the tip of the iceberg, the sound that causes an avalanche, the small interlude of peace before all hell breaks loose… This is only the beginning…

Jenny felt a few tears well up in her eyes as she still looked silently at the professors. She wiped them away before they could run down her cheeks. 

"He's going to come back,…" murmured Jenny quietly, "He's going to come back… I just know it…"

Professor Dumbledore inclined his head slightly. 

"I am unsure of how complete my memory charm was… hopefully, it will have extinguished his memory of this era…"

Jenny shook her head vigorously. 

"No… He's coming back… I just know it…" she said quietly, staring at the floor. The four professors gazed at the small first year. She looked like a lost child; her green eyes round, fear and sadness intermixed with tears that she was fighting to keep from escaping. She was too young to feel like this. Dumbledore knew that she had seen their sadness and absorbed it, reflecting it back out to them.

"We will not know when he returns… We must keep watch for him," said Dumbledore calmly, "We shall only mention this incident to those we trust explicitly, You know of whom I speak of…" He shot glances at the three professors. 

He then stooped slightly, to look Jenny in the eye. 

"Do you understand what would happen if news of this incident got out Miss Hansen?"

Jenny shook her head slightly.

"It would create panic, people would do rash and foolish things… tell only those you would trust with your life…" Jenny nodded slowly, starting to understand. 

"Now, Harry, could you escort Miss Hansen back to the hospital wing?"

Professor Potter nodded and beckoned Jenny to follow him. Jenny followed him slowly, when they reached the library door, Dumbledore's voice rang out. 

"Oh, and Miss Hansen, I reward fifty points to Gryffindor for your courage and bravery tonight…"

Jenny's only response was a weak smile. 

  ~~~~~~~

Out the windows of the Hospital wing, a faint grey haze could be seen on the horizon as Jenny pushed open the door. Stepping into the wing, she noted that all her friends were asleep on various beds. 

Madam Noel bustled out of her office and led her over to a bed, handing her a goblet of potion. Jenny drank it without question and climbed onto the bed. Just as she closed her eyes, she saw Professor Potter talking to Madam Noel in a low voice. 

  ~~~~~~~

The next few days at Hogwarts were very quiet. 

The teachers had a new vigilance about them, though only Jenny and her friends seemed to notice the hushed aura that wafted faintly around the Professors. School went on as usual, Gryffindor flattened Hufflepuff in the last Quidditch game before winter break. 

During the last few days before winter break, Jenny happened to look out a window in the library to see two figures walking up the drive. Both were wearing muggle overcoats and carrying small suitcases. The hoods of the coats were up, so Jenny could not identify them. One was a kid, probably about their age and the other looked like a woman, but Jenny wasn't sure.

Salina looked up from her charms homework. 

"What is it Jens?" she asked. 

Jenny continued squinting out the window. 

"Look, there's two people coming up the drive…they're dressed in muggle clothes…" Salina stood up and joined Jenny at the window. Together, they watched the two figures approach the main entrance of the castle, which was off to their left and just out of sight. 

The smaller figure pulled off her hood and Jenny felt her jaw drop open slightly as a familiar head of blonde hair appeared. It was Charlotte. With a shriek, Jenny barreled out of the library, leaving Salina standing there, looking somewhat bewildered.

Jenny flew down several flights of staircases, yelling apologies over her shoulder to those she bumped or knocked over. She took the main staircase several steps at a time, just in time to see her mother pushing the great front doors of the entrance hall shut and pulling off her hood. 

"Mum!" cried Jenny, hurling herself into her mum's arms. 

"Ooof!" Wheezed Genevieve as 90 pounds of Jenny hit her midsection and hugged her tight. Genevieve knelt slightly and hugged her daughter back. Charlotte stood silently, looking up at the high ceiling of the entrance hall and at the few students who passed by, who were watching curiously. Charlotte waved shyly to two Hufflepuff second years, who gave small smiles in return before they disappeared into the great hall. 

"Mum, what are you doing here?" demanded Jenny. 

"Thought I'd come for a visit… and Charlotte wanted to come too, so I thought I'd bring her along… I must tell the headmaster that I've arrived, he wished to meet me… Perhaps you could tell me were his office is Jens?" 

Smiling broadly, Jenny led her mother up the stairs towards Dumbledore's office. When they had reached the stone gargoyle, Genevieve had insisted on going up alone.

"Why don't you show Charlotte around this place?"

The two girls agreed and set off down the corridor, Jenny spouting off trivia about the castle. Charlotte appeared to be overwhelmed by the castle itself that all she could do was nod faintly whenever Jenny inhaled. 

"Jens!" called a voice. 

Jenny and Charlotte wheeled around to see Eddie striding towards them. He stopped short, recognizing Charlotte. 

"How'd you get here?" he asked, rather surprised. 

"I came with Jenny's mum," replied Charlotte shyly. 

"Oh…well… Welcome to Hogwarts then…" Eddie turned to Jenny, "Salina was wondering where you had gotten off to," he said eyeing Charlotte out of the corner of his eye as she examined a portrait of a group of wizards who were playing cards.

"Why don't we show Charlotte the library? That's where Salina is right?"

  ~~~~~~~~

Several minutes later Jenny pushed open the door of the library. Salina stalked up to them, her mouth pinched and she was obviously annoyed. Her brow knit with confusion when she saw Charlotte. 

"Ummm… Salina, this is Charlotte…remember I told you about her?"

There was a silence. 

"Hi…" said Charlotte nervously. 

Salina seemed torn between telling Jenny off and greeting Charlotte. She managed to un-pinch her mouth enough to say "Hello." Just then, Derek Malfoy, flanked by several of his Slytherin cronies, strode into the library. 

Salina, Eddie and Jenny tried to re-arrange themselves around Charlotte so the Slytherins wouldn't see her. They weren't fast enough and Derek redirected his steps over to them. He rudely shoved his way past Jenny and she repressed the urge to throw him across the room.   

"Who are you?" he demanded of Charlotte, getting straight to the point. Charlotte smiled nervously, not noticing Jenny's frantic expression and repeated slashing movements across her throat.  

"I'm Charlotte Ramsey… I'm a friend of Jenny's from her last school…what's your name?" asked Charlotte. Jenny slumped. She heard Eddie inhale sharply and Salina swore under her breath. 

Derek had an oddly mixed expression of disgust and delight.

"Well, Well, well," he said, sneering at Salina, "My sister has lowered herself to a new level…Mudbloods aren't enough for her anymore, she is associating with muggles…" The four Slytherins with him all laughed nastily.  

Charlotte blanched while Salina's cheeks began to burn. 

"Bugger off Derek, At least I'm not afraid to go near them!" she

hissed, mindful of the fact that Madam Smith, the librarian, 

was eyeing them with pursed lips and a disapproving expression. Derek frowned and Jenny, seizing the opportunity to mess with his mind a little, sent a breeze brushing by him. 

Derek jerked slightly. Jenny smiled innocently at him when he turned to glare at her. He turned back to Salina. 

"Father's going to hear about this" he spat and stalked out of the library, his goons following. 

"He's going to try something," said Salina bluntly, staring after her brother's retreating back, "and he's going to try and do it when your not around Jens, the only reason he even came over here was because Madam Smith was around…he's scared of you Jens, but the rest of us are fair game to him." 

"That guy is your brother?" demanded Charlotte, stricken. 

"Twin brother," replied Salina grimly, "Couldn't be more different could we?" 

Charlotte looked Salina up and down. "Not on the outside," she replied, "but on the inside, yah."

"He's such a prat… I don't like even admitting I'm related to him, or anyone else in my family, they are so horrible…" she said bitterly, her face. Charlotte felt an odd sort of kinship with the tall blonde girl. She knew what it was like to have a horrible family life.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~

Two hours later, after a thorough tour of the school, Jenny led her mother and Charlotte into the Great Hall for supper. 

Professor Dumbledore had offered to have a seat added to the teacher's table for Genevieve, but she declined, saying she would rather eat with her daughter. She also had asked not to be announced as a guest.

So, both Genevieve and Charlotte were seated at the Gryffindor table with Jenny, Eddie and Arianna, waiting anxiously for the food to arrive. Charlotte was being plagued with questions about muggle schools, television and cars from curious wizard-born students. Genevieve divided her concentration between talking to her daughter and watching the head table- Harry had yet to appear.     

"Mum, Why do you keep looking up at the teacher's table?" asked Jenny. 

"Who sits in that empty chair there?" Genevieve motioned to the sole empty chair, which was four places to the right of Dumbledore's. 

"Oh, Professor Potter usually sits there, but sometimes he doesn't show up for dinner…" replied Jenny, "Eddie says he often takes his dinner in his office so he can do stuff like grading essays and such," Jenny didn't notice her mother's slightly disappointed expression. 

They were distracted by the arrival of the food from the kitchens. 

Both Genevieve and Charlotte jumped and Charlotte poked a chicken leg that Jenny had put on her plate with her fork. She seemed to be testing to see if it was real. After Arianna assured her that it was real, she dug in happily.     

Genevieve spent the rest of the evening eyeing the empty chair, as though wishing its usual occupant would appear with a 'poof!'

  ~~~~~~~~~

meheeners: Thanks… though I often wish I could write more funny stuff

Loopy Luna Lovegood: Thanks!

Lyra Pendragon: Now which of your reviews should I reply to? :P I thank thee for all of them…. And Yes, Tom went seventy years into the future and Jenny's powers will eventually be explained in full. 

Lindiel Eryn: Actually, Todd's purpose was the prophecy… but he can have many uses can't he? :P I'm not sure if it was you I explained Genevieve's heritage to, but yes, she is the descendant of a squib. Thanks for the review!

HPLG: YES! YES! I am writing more! :P:P  I plan on doing a trilogy.

 Kyntor: Yes, I remember that scene very well… but it was also a pretty close fight, Voldemort nearly won it. Thanks for the review.

 Lala-the-panda: Thanks…. I love using cliffhangers, they usually actually make writing this story more interesting for me, because even I don't really know what's going to happen to my characters until I write it. 

FieryPhoenix: Okay, I think it was you who I explained Jenny's blood to, so I'll leave that. I have the Genevieve and Harry chapter planned out; in fact… it might even be the next chapter, or the one right after, (Depends how well this story writes itself out, but I promise that a Genevieve/Harry scene will be in one of the next two chapters!)

 And thanks too:

Hermione Lyn Granger 

Mjk306

Kat6528

     


	20. Linage

Disclaimer: Don't own, Don't sue

Chapter 21:

Dinner ended without much event and many people began to wander off to bed. Several students approached from the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables to either welcome Genevieve or Charlotte or just to watch them, as though they were scientists watching an experiment's progress.

As Jenny tried to maneuver her mother and friend out of the Great hall, (Charlotte could not get enough of the enchanted ceiling,) A small energetic looking witch with black hair pulled into a messy bun and a pointed purple hat hurried up. Jenny recognized her from the staff table, but had never spoken to her and wasn't sure of what class she taught.

"Hello… I'm Professor Higgins," she announced, seizing Genevieve's hand and shaking it vigorously.

"Genevieve Hansen," replied Genevieve courteously, yet somewhat confused.

"Ah, I'm sorry, but I teach muggle studies here at Hogwarts and I just got wind of the fact that you're a muggle and I was hoping, that perhaps you could come speak to my sixth and seventh year classes about the muggle world?" She said this all in one breath and fast enough that Genevieve had to pause to let the witch's sentence sink in.

When she had finally processed the woman's hurried speech, she smiled broadly.

"I'd love to, In fact, I'm a teacher myself… I should be here for a few days at the least… When should I show up?"

Jenny and Charlotte waited impatiently as the two women exchanged specifics on times. Students streamed by them out of the great hall, dividing into three distinct groups separating into various parts of the school. Most of the Gryffindor's and Ravenclaws made their way up the staircases, while the Slytherins and Hufflepuffs filtered off into the two different doorways that led from the entrance hall.

Eddie popped out of the Great hall, eating a piece of fudge and stood next to the two girls, also waiting for Genevieve. Anyone who observed the two magical friends would have gotten the impression that they were watchdogs, protecting Charlotte.

Charlotte took to people watching with zeal and examined everyone who went by her, smiling at those who seemed friendly. Both Jenny and Eddie kept a wary eye on the Slytherins who were staring at Charlotte with ill-disguised disgust or open incredulity.

Thankfully, Charlotte did not notice them.

When Genevieve had finished talking to Professor Higgins, she came out of the great hall with a small, contented smile on her face. She was going to enjoy these teaching sessions, she was sure.

Jenny and Eddie led the way to the Gryffindor dormitories, coming to a stop in front of the Fat Lady.

"Password dears?" she asked, eyeing Charlotte and Genevieve.

"Billywig" announced Eddie, and the Fat Lady nodded and swung forward on her hinges, admitting the group into the common room. As they stepped into the circular room, a few people glanced at them and did not comment other then to stare a few moments longer then necessary. For the Gryffindors had warmed up quite quickly to the fact that now there were two muggles in their midst.

After showing her mother and Charlotte the first year girls dormitory (In which, two cots with plushy purple sleeping bags on them had appeared) and the bathroom, Jenny and Eddie settled down to working on their homework. Genevieve sat in an armchair near the fire, reading. Arianna was teaching Charlotte the basics of wizard's chess. Interestingly enough, Charlotte was good and managed to beat Arianna in two out of three games, because of this Eddie's somewhat sexist and prejudiced chessmen were rather disgruntled that two girls were ordering them about, one being a muggle.

Jenny figured that Charlotte made an extra effort to win just to shut the damn chessmen up.

Around nine-thirty, Jenny, Eddie, Arianna and Charlotte went up to bed. Genevieve watched her daughter mount the girl's stairwell after saying goodnight.

Genevieve felt restless; she wanted to take a walk, to explore the castle. She wanted to…wanted to_… find Harry._

Pushing open the portrait and passing a group of older Gryffindor girls who were entering the common room and gabbing about some Ravenclaw hottie, Genevieve walked down the corridor leading away from the portrait. Stopping to examine the moving portraits and suits of armor every so often, she wandered up and down stairwells and down corridors. Several times, she glimpsed elder students of the school out and about the corridors. Once, she turned down a corridor, only to see a young couple having a heavy snog session in a shadowed corner and turned on her heel to head in the other direction.

Smiling slightly and rolling her eyes, Genevieve continued down the other corridor. _I was way to shy to do that when I was young…_ she thought to herself, chuckling.

As the sky outside darkened, Genevieve felt even more of a yearning to explore the corridors of the castle. On an impulse, Genevieve pushed aside a tapestry that revealed a spiral staircase that twisted upwards. Taking the steps at a quick pace, Genevieve lost her balance when suddenly, her left foot sunk into one of the steps.

Crying out in a combination of surprise and pain, Genevieve attempted to maneuver her other foot up to the stair above it, only to discover that she had sunk more than she thought. Eyes watering from her leg being held in such a rigid and painful position, Genevieve tried to move her right foot back down to the step below. Not being able to twist around and see where her foot was going, she miscalculated and her right foot sunk into the magical stair. She was now knee-deep in the step.

"Hello!" Called out Genevieve, forcing words out, "Is anyone there? I'm stuck!"

Silence.

"Hello?"

As Genevieve sunk lower into the stair, she began to panic somewhat. _Could someone disappear into one of these?_ The thought crossed her mind and it made her even more frantic.

"I'm stuck in this stair! Help! Is anyone there? Please? Anyone… help me!"

Then "Hello?" A man's voice echoed up the stairwell, accompanied by the sound of someone climbing the stairs.

"Oh thank god," breathed Genevieve, trying in vain to turn around slightly. "I'm stuck in this stair and I'm sinking and… _ouch…_my feet are seizing up,"

"Don't worry, I'll have you out of there in a second," said the voice reassuringly. He was right behind her now and try as she might, she couldn't turn her head enough to see him. He slid his arms under her armpits and heaved upwards. With almost no effort, he lifted her out of the step and set her on the one above it.

The "thank you" that she had planned on saying died on her lips as she turned to face him. It was Harry.

With extreme force of will, Genevieve kept her mouth from falling open, but she couldn't stop her eyes from going as wide as saucers. She recognized him immediately, from the messy black hair to the intense green eyes that were identical to Jenny's. Oddly, when they had first met, She had never noticed his scar, but now she could see it; barely concealed beneath his fringe.

Harry's eyes narrowed slightly as he surveyed her, but said nothing.

_Come on, Come on, Say it… _commanded Genevieve's brain _Say 'Thank you'_

"Thanks…" Genevieve managed to force out. _Does he even recognize me? Oh god, if he thinks I'm some star-stuck fan I will just die-_

"Do I know you?" He asked suddenly, his brow knit. He was looking her up and down and had the look of someone who was trying to remember something. Genevieve resisted the impulse tohug him.

"Ummm…" Inwardly, Genevieve cursed her shyness. She had worked for years trying to get rid of it, but often, it flared up when she least needed it. "You probably know my daughter Jenny, she goes to school here and she's on the Gryffindor Qued… Quider…oh whatdyacallit…"

"Quidditch?" volunteered Harry, with a somewhat pained expression.

"That's it, She's on the Gryffindor Quidditch team."

Harry nodded, a small smile playing across his face. "I know her, very talented in Quidditch and one of the highest achievers in my class,"

_She's also your daughter Harry, She's just like you, inside and out, according to Dumbledore, would what your saying to me now change if you knew?_

Genevieve held out her hand, "Genevieve Hansen".

Harry shook it. "Harry Potter" he replied politely.

"I should really be going now, I have several more essays to grade. It was a pleasure meeting you, Mrs. Hansen,"

"Genevieve, call me Genevieve, and I'm not married," replied Genevieve, wincing inwardly.

_He doesn't remember at all, does he?_

Harry nodded and turned to head back down the stairs.

_I can't just let him leave…_

"Jenny got her Quidditch talent from her father," blurted Genevieve when he had descended three steps. Harry paused and turned to face her, his green eyestellingof his curiosity.Genevieve found that the floor was easier to look at than Harry's face and continued in a rushed voice.

"She's a spitting image of him, her nose, messy hair, her face, her green eyes… They are this beautiful emerald colour…Just like his. She is just like him personality wise too… stubborn, brave, powerful… She's more his daughter than mine… I was just a normal woman, blessed with the magical daughter of an extraordinary man," Genevieve sighed, "Her father doesn't even remember me though. He doesn't even know he has a daughter."

She gathered up her courage and raised her eyes to meet his gaze.

Harry stood as though frozen in stone, his eyes wide.

"Who is he?" he asked hoarsely.

The silence was thick and oppressive.

Genevieve cleared her throat, and before words could fail her again, she blurted out the answer; "You".

Harry felt frozen, beyond comprehension.

_My daughter has been under my nose for the past four months, yet I did not notice…_

Genevieve stared at him silently, her eyes hopeful and echoing truth. Harry had known Jenny's mother was a muggle, but finally the connection had made itself clear in his mind.

A flash of the nightclub after Ron and Hermione had left; Genevieve sitting there, clutching a beer and gazing at him earnestly. The dream of her sitting by a window. The prophecy.

_Oh god… The prophecy…_

Harry managed a smile, before impulsivelystepping forward and pulling Genevieve into a hug.

* * *

"When Genevieve left my office earlier today, I took the liberty of researching her family tree. This is what I found…" Dumbledore waved his wand and several large books flew off the shelves across the room and landed smoothly on his desk, flipping open to the pages that were needed.

Both Genevieve and Harry leaned forward to look at the ancient volumes. Inscribed in the first one was an intricate and detailed family tree. Heading the top was the name Ravenclaw and under it, a few words were inscribed in Latin.

"See here?" Dumbledore tapped a name and it was illuminated.

_Rowena Ravenclaw _

_Witch _

_b. ? d. June 1028_

Next to it, a name that had worn away through the ages; a line and a heart joined them. Branching down from this line, a single name was underneath, Fabian Ravenclaw; who divided into two more people.

Dumbledore tapped Rowena's name once more and a shimmering line traced its way down her linage, illuminating names and parental connections.

"Who's Rowena Ravenclaw?" asked Genevieve curiously.

Harry glanced at her sharply, surprised. Dumbledore smiled kindly.

"Rowena Ravenclaw was one of the four founders of this school, She was a brilliant and beautiful witch. She created the Ravenclaw house," explained Dumbledore.

"Oh," replied Genevieve in a small voice, "What does she have to do with all this?"

"Everything," replied Harry quietly.

"Why?"

Harry and Dumbledore exchanged glances.

"There was a prophecy, given to a friend of ours less than a month ago, by a young seer…Well, perhaps you should see it for yourself, for it will affect your daughter's life greatly," answered Dumbledore, moving towards a small cupboard behind his desk and motioning for Genevieve to come closer.

"This is a pensieve, it allows one to withdraw thoughts from ones mind and examine them at that person's leisure," Dumbledore pulled a stone basin filled with what Genevieve could only describe as liquid wind. He set it on his desk and swirled it gently with his wand. A figure rose out of the swirling thoughts, and Genevieve gasped as she recognized the man.

"That's Todd!" She exclaimed before being surprised into silence by the harsh voice that emanated from the tiny revolving figure.

_"The powers of the heir of the Phoenix_

_have begun to awaken,_

_Within her, the blood of two houses._

_One of bravery, one of intellect._

_Their heirs united, becoming one. _

_The heir of the phoenix will vanquish_

_the heir of the snake._

_She will not be alone."_

Genevieve stared at the misty revolving figure of Todd for several minutes before turning to face Harry and Dumbledore.

"I don't get it," She said with a twisted grimace on her face.

"Perhaps you should know that the Hogwarts houses each value one quality above all else; Hufflepuff values loyalty, Slytherin values cunning, Ravenclaw values intelligence and-"

"Gryffindor values bravery." finished Genevieve, "I knew a bit about that, from Jenny's letters."

Dumbledore nodded and motioned her over to the Ravenclaw book. The illuminated line had gone through several pages until it had halted on two names, both of which were flashing pink.

Genevieve stared at the names in disbelief.

"But…but… That's my name and my sister's!"

Indeed, it was. Descending through her father, the names of Genevieve and the sister she hadn't seen in years:

_Margaret Lindsey Thomas (nee: Hansen)  
__muggle  
__b. November 1st 1975_

_Genevieve Anne Hansen  
__Muggle  
__b. February 27th 1981_

Underneath her own name was Jenny's entry.

_Jenny Marie Hansen  
__Witch b.  
__April 14th 2000  
_The phoenix.

Underneath Margaret's were the names of three children.

_Melissa Anne Thomas  
Muggle  
b. June 17th 2000 _

_Andrew Ryan Thomas  
wizard  
b. April 27th 2002 _

_Heather Marie Thomas  
witch  
b. April 27th 2002_

Genevieve stared at the three names with a stunned expression.

_Margaret never told me she got married, but then, we haven't talked to each other in over a decade… I still remember our fight…_

Genevieve shook her head slightly. _Magical twins?_ Poor Margaret had her hands full, if raising Jenny had been any indication.

"What?" Asked Harry upon seeing her expression.

"My sister lives in America, I haven't seen or talked to her in years… but this… this is crazy… How can we be muggles if this Rowena person was a witch?"

"A squib was born into the Ravenclaw line in the 1500's," answered Dumbledore serenely, "Geoffrey Ravenclaw, he was an only child, and the Ravenclaw line has since been a muggle lineage, adopting the name 'Hansen' halfway through the seventeenth century."

"What happened to the other lines?" asked Genevieve curiously, "Since my sister and I are both Ravenclaws, What about the other three?"

"Think of the prophecy Genevieve, perhaps that Ravenclaw intellect will help you," said Dumbledore gently.

_The prophecy? What about it?_ Thought Genevieve, _How did it go again? The powers of the Heir of The Phoenix have begun to awaken, Within her the blood of two houses, one of intellect, one of bravery-_ "Oh!" Genevieve turned to stare at Harry, surprised.

Harry nodded.

"I'm Gryffindor's heir, through my father's side."

"His name was James right?" asked Genevieve.

Harry started, "How did you know that?"

Genevieve told him about remembering his name and trying to track him down in Diagon Alley and about finding his picture in the book and comparing it to Jenny's.

Harry nodded, understanding.

"So, if we're the 'heirs' of Gryffindor and Ravenclaw, Who are the heirs of the other two houses?" asked Genevieve curiously.

"Lord Voldemort was the direct descendant of Salazar Slytherin, while the family descended from Helga Hufflepuff currently resides in Canada in relative anonymity," replied Dumbledore, sitting down at his desk once more and wiping his glasses before putting them back on his bent nose.

Genevieve was very quiet for several minutes, then looked up at the two men. On her lips was a very relevant question:

"How the hell are we going to tell Jenny?"

* * *

There you have it, some Harry and Genevieve action.

If you want a rather bad drawing of Jens, Thomas, Jon and Salina, go to click on "drawings" There is a very compressed drawing of the foursome in their 4th year, set with them sneaking around at night but the scanner ate the shading, so it doesn't look like nighttime anymore. Eddie isn't there for a reason that will be revealed and Jenny is holding the Marauder's map.

And thank you to my reviewers!

Raquel: Thank you! I'm not actually bringing Tom back in this book, the encounter with him is a taster for the sequel, which will be set in Jenny's fourth year and the plot will be infinitely more complex. Also, the reason I keep the muggle world so closely twined into my story is because I love the interactions between wizarding and muggle characters. I hope this chapter cleared up some of the power understandings, as Jenny has some pretty twisted genes.

Kirjava Deamon: Happy with this update? I love original characters and harbor an intense dislike for Mary-sues.

Lyra Pendragon: Thanks for putting my story on your site!

FieryPhoenix: Here's your Genevieve/Harry chapter, hope you liked it.

And thanks to:

Harriet Jamina Potter

LaLa-the-Panda

I'm not the weakest link

Soccerlefty

Mjk306


	21. EEEEEEEW! :P

Disclaimer: Love him, do not own him. JK does.

Authors note: Has anyone seen JK's answer to the Mark Evans question on her website? I was laughing _SO _hard.

Chapter 22

Jenny's eyes popped open at precisely 8:27 am.

At least, that's what the tiny windup alarm clock that sat on her nightstand informed her when she rolled over and pulled aside the hangings around her bed. Jenny peered around the room.

All the other girls including Charlotte were still fast asleep. Surprised, Jenny noted that her mother's cot was empty and did not appear to have been used.

Jenny pulled herself out of bed and dressed, treading quietly, so as not to wake the other girls, as they had had the equivalent of a slumber party last night, staying up till mid-night talking, laughing and eating the muggle candy that Charlotte had brought. (Roxann had been shocked to learn that muggle bubble gum did not blow bubbles that lasted for days and actually took a bit of skill to make bubbles with)

Creeping out of the dormitory, she headed down to the great hall for an early breakfast.

* * *

Genevieve awoke with a crick in her neck.

Cracking open her eyes, she discerned that she had fallen asleep in the poofy maroon armchair in Harry's office. She was also very warm. Looking down, she realized that someone, probably Harry, had covered her with a woolen blanket.

The scratching of a quill could be heard and Genevieve slowly turned her head.

Harry looked up from his essay grading and smiled.

"Glad to see your awake," he remarked.

Genevieve straightened up and rubbed her sore neck.

"About when did I fall asleep?" she asked, yawning.

"Around two, I didn't want to wake you up though," he replied quietly, then a mischievous grin spread across his face "besides, what man would give up the chance to watch a woman like you sleep?"

Genevieve laughed.

"If there was something within my reach, I'd throw it at you Harry" she joked. Harry grinned.

They had spent most of last night talking over mugs of butterbeer, catching up on each other's lives. Both had tacitly agreed on no alcohol, both of them thinking pointedly of the last time they had gotten drunk in each other's presence, the result of which was sleeping four floors above them in the in the first year girls dormitory in the Gryffindor tower.

Genevieve had listened raptly to the stories that Harry had told about his time at Hogwarts with Ron and Hermione and Genevieve told Harry about Jenny's childhood, something that he wished he had not missed.

* * *

_"I met Hermione once, In Diagon alley," Genevieve had said offhandedly during their conversation the night before. _

_"Oh?" _

_"Yah… When we were buying Jenny's school supplies… She asked if she could sit at my table, she had her little daughter with her…Molly was her name…"_

_Harry smiled, a wistful look in his eyes "They named her after Ron's mother, she died about six years ago, Molly was like a mother to me, she'd make me eat third helpings and knit me sweaters… I was another Weasley son to her, despite my hair being black…"_

_"Do all the Weasley's have that red hair?" _

_Harry laughed and nodded._

_"Well, all of them except Me and the Weasley wives…"_

_"Weasley wives?"_

_"Yep, the nickname that Molly came up with for all the woman then Weasley brothers married, None of them are red-heads; Fleur has silver, Cassidy and Julia are blonde, while Hermione, Angelina and Liz are brunette," he explained counting them up on his fingers._

_"Who's Fleur?" _

_"Bill's wife, She's part veela… remember I told you about her? I had to compete against her in the Tri-wizard tournament"_

_"Right, I remember now…" _

* * *

Genevieve stood up and stretched out, trying to ease her cramped neck.

"I'm starved," she proclaimed, "I'll go eat breakfast… How about a walk later on?"

Harry peered out the window at the lightly falling snow.

"In this weather? Sure."

Genevieve flashed him a quick smile and left the office.

* * *

After Jenny had finished her breakfast, she had claimed one of the best chairs near the fire and was reading _A Handful of Time_ by Kit Pearson, a Canadian author whom she liked.

Eddie made his way downstairs at about ten after nine, just when the common room was starting to fill up with sleepy people talking in muted voices. Jenny watched him descend the staircase and glance out one of the windows and do a double take.

"I don't believe it!" he exclaimed, his nose suddenly glued to the window.

"What?" said Jenny, getting up from her chair, but making sure to leave her book there, lest anyone try to take her spot.

"Your mum and Harry are walking down by the lake… and they're… _and they're holding hands…" _replied Eddie in a hushed voice, his horror evident.

"Let me see," Jenny pushed Eddie aside and stood on her tiptoes to peer out the window.

"I wonder why they're doing that," said Jenny curiously.

"They _holding hands…" _said Eddie, obviously not listening.

"What's wrong with holding hands Eddie?" asked Jenny irately.

"Well… y'know…" Eddie's ears started turning pink.

"No, I don't, what's your problem Eddie? Still afraid of cooties?" Jenny poked him hard in the shoulder. Eddie's ears turned a deep red and he mumbled something.

"What?"

"Yeah…" said Eddie in a barely audible voice.

Jenny made a point of poking him forcibly again.

"See?" She said triumphantly, "No cooties."

"Well," said Eddie uncomfortably, "It's different with you, because you're my friend… but people like them," he jerked his head towards the girls staircase, "I'm not so sure about…"

Jenny turned to see several sixth years descending the staircase, obviously prepared for a Hogsmeade outing, which was scheduled for later on that day. All were dressed in their winter best and all were giggling about something. Jenny vaguely remembered one of the bunch loudly exclaiming about how _cute _some of the little first years were.

"I see…" she replied, shaking her head.

* * *

Harry showed Genevieve all around the Hogwarts grounds, The Quidditch pitch, the green houses, Hagrid's hut, even the Forbidden forest.

"I got detention once in my first year… had to go in there and help Hagrid find an injured unicorn,"

"Unicorns? You've got those too?"

"Yep, Unicorns, Dragons, Phoenixes, Griffins, Hippogriffs, pixies… I could lend you books on the subject…" remarked Harry, coming to a stop and staring out over the frozen lake, where a few diehard students were skating.

"Harry," A thought coming to Genevieve's mind, "Do you know a boy named Riley Dursley?"

Harry jerked with surprise, before nodding.

"He's my cousin's son…my second cousin, I guess, I think he's about ten… Why would you want to know?"

"He's in my class, and he told me a rather interesting story about how a man with black hair and an odd scar appeared on his family's coffee table and yelled at his father to get out of the house,"

Harry grimaced and hung his head.

"Yah, We had received rumors that Dudley's house was going to be blazed… He's related to me and that makes him a target for those who want to punish me in some way. I have gone out of my way to ward his house, but there's only so much you can do when the person your protecting doesn't appreciate it. Dudley hates magic; he's scared of it. His mother hated mine and it was passed on. Riley will be getting his Hogwarts letter next year, and so will his sister Julia in three years. I checked the Book of Births myself. I consider it a grand irony,"

"Ah," Genevieve paused, then in thoughtful voice, continued; "I guess it could be… Perhaps whenever school starts up again, I could tell him about it, give him a bit of warning. I know with Jenny, it was quite a shock, but when I thought about it, it made perfect sense and it explained all the unusual things that had been happening. Yet I've talked to a few people around Diagon alley on the few times I've visited it and found out that Jens showed more power before Hogwarts than most of those pureblooded people that I keep hearing about do."

Harry raised an eyebrow, then smiled and rolled his eyes.

"Well, Jenny has some pretty potent bloodlines running through her. Both my parents were powerful in their own right. My father through the Gryffindor line, and my mother got a lucky draw in genetics, and both of them were some of the best students that Hogwarts had seen before Hermione came along and shattered a bunch of records… but that's Hermione for you, always the best at anything to do with books…" Harry paused and took a deep breath before continuing.

"Voldemort was heir of Slytherin and one of the most powerful wizards of all time and I received a good dose of his powers at age of one. So, already, we've got three powerful bloodlines, combined in me; and look where that took me. Screwed up my life a fair bit. Then, one night while I'm out at a club with 'Mione and Ron, I happen to get drunk with and knock up a beautiful woman who happens to be the heir of _Ravenclaw, _and I, like a complete arse, walk away and forget about it all. My daughter is born some nine months later and I still have no idea she exists. This ignorance continues for another ten years until that prophecy decided to blindside me, leaving me dizzy and confused. Then, less than a month later, that beautiful woman appears at the castle, claiming that my daughter has been right in front of me for a good four months and that she resembles her father so much that everyone but thick-headed old me recognizes her."

Harry ended his speech by throwing his arms wide and turning to Genevieve.

"Fate is a fickle friend, no?" he asked in a light voice.

"Yes, Fate is a fickle friend," replied Genevieve, laughing at the look of distress that Harry was blatantly faking. Taking his hand, she started pulling him towards the castle.

"Lets head in, I am absolutely frozen," she said, smiling. Harry started to protest then changed his mind in mid-word as an idea sprung to mind. "Okay," he replied, "but not before I do this." He reached out and pulled her close.

"Do what?" asked Genevieve mischievously.

"This,"

With that, he leaned close and kissed her.

* * *

"Ewwwww!!!!" This time the indignant exclamation was shared by both Jenny and Eddie. They had had their noses glued to the window for the past five minutes, spying on Jenny's mother and Professor Potter down by the lake.

Jenny turned away from the window and covered her eyes.

"You don't know how not cool it is to watch your mom kiss your Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher!" she all but wailed.

"I thought watching my parents kiss was bad," added Eddie ruefully.

Jenny smiled weakly at her friend and went off to finish reading _A Handful of Time. _Eddie mumbled something about getting breakfast and climbed out the portrait hole.

* * *

Thomas crawled out of bed at ten after nine.

Pushing aside the royal blue hangings around his bed, he pulled himself to his feet. Sitting on the bed opposite, Danny Boca, a boy with dark brown hair and eyes, was resolutely doing his potions essay.

"I was waiting for you to wake up," remarked Danny, peering up from his foot long essay.

"Need help?" asked Thomas woozily. He was not a morning person and never had been. Danny nodded.

"How about you wait till I'm fully conscious before you trust any information coming from me, Okay?" suggested Thomas, as he pulled on a pair of jeans. "Okay," replied Danny, putting his essay away, and instead, pulling out his charms homework.

"I'll see you in a bit," said Thomas as he pulled on a T-shirt and a hoody. Stuffing his hands in the pockets to ward off the cold, he headed down for breakfast. He met Eddie halfway down a staircase on the third floor and found that the red-head was somewhat preoccupied.

"S'up mate?" asked Thomas, "Your looking a little down."

Eddie filled Thomas in on what he and Jenny had seen down by the lake. Thomas paused, thoughtful.

"Y'know what I've noticed? Jens looks a lot like Professor Potter," he commented continuing to walk down the stairs. "Yah, so?" replied Eddie, giving a portrait of a tipsy looking wizard a curious glance.

"Well, Don't you think it's odd that Jens looks a lot like him, and that she doesn't have a dad, then you see her mum and Professor Potter kissing down by the lake?" remarked Thomas, his stormy blue eyes contemplative. Eddie rounded on him, brown eyes as round as galleons.

"Bloody hell, you don't mean…?" He choked out, "I mean, you don't think Harry is Jenny's _dad _do you?"

Thomas shrugged.

"It'd explain a lot of things…" he replied, as they reached the main staircase and descended it. Passing a crowd of Hufflepuff fourth years, the two friends made their way to their respective tables. Thomas grabbed a piece of buttered toast from the Ravenclaw table, applied some blueberry jam and went to join Eddie at the end of the Gryffindor table. Being careful to sit away from all the other breakfasting Gryffindors, the two discussed the idea of having one of their best friends being related to one of the most famous wizards since Merlin.

Now you all have a first hand view of why Thomas is in Ravenclaw. As by his comment in the Hogwarts express chapter, he is not one for book learning. He's just good at logic and figuring things out :p I know everyone has probably like forgotten about the express comment by now, but I felt a need to justify why I stuck him there.

* * *

And to my reviewers!

That Aerin: Thanks for all of your reviews! :D Damn, there were a lot of them… lessee now; I thank profusely for the criticism. I never get any and it feels very refreshing when I do. About the barrier thing, I couldn't remember when I wrote that chapter whether muggles were allowed on the platform, so I wrote that anyone who was looking for it could find it. So, Charlotte is not magic and never will be and while not all Slytherin's are evil, some can be right prats, no? And while I intended for Genevieve's nickname to be Genie, you can call her Gena. (I asked, she doesn't mind:P)

Kady Rilla Wholi: Yep, there's definitely going to be a sequel. I can even tell you the title. "Heir of the Phoenix: Past." Tom Riddle becomes an important character in the sequel when he tries to mess with Time a bit! Jenny is going to get very pissed off at him and since she inherited her temper from Harry…Well, Tom Riddle better watch out. It'll be set in her fourth year and we'll get to see the Marauders! Yay! As for how many chapters this story will take, I'm not really sure.

Wytil: Yep, Tom's gone until the sequel and Jenny _doesn't _know. She may have a vague idea, but it's far from concrete.

Lil-and-sarah: Thanks! And I actually didn't get any reply from your guys' website. I registered over two weeks ago.

FieryPhoenix: About Genevieve's nieces and nephew, they'll probably show up for a visit in the second or third books, but they won't be principal characters. I'm planning to have Genevieve try to reconcile with her sister, why they were fighting will be revealed in a later chapter. The twins will be attending Castlewood Academy of Magic (From "Anna Grayson and the Order of Merlin" by Dave & Katie O'Brian)… Yes, I'm blatantly advertising another fic… Go read it! It's in my favorites.

Raquel: And get into Royal messes they shall…

And Thanks to:

CommaSplice

Mjk306 (as always J )

Kat6528

LaLathePanda

Kirjava Deamon


	22. Who is he?

* * *

Disclaimer: Author: "...and Harry Potter is owned by whom?"  
Readers: "JK Rowling!"  
Author: "...And I only write about him because?"  
Readers: "'Cause he's the best!"  
  
Chapter 23  
  
Jenny stared mutely over the top of A Handful of Time when her mother entered the Gryffindor common room. Try as she might, she knew she would never be able to look Professor Potter in the eye again without imagining him and her mother kissing. It was not a comforting thought. Your mum wasn't supposed to do stuff like that, kissing a teacher. As her mother spotted her, Jenny made as if she had been reading, instead of watching her mother.  
  
Genevieve glanced around the crowded room for Jenny, who was holed up in an armchair by the fire, buried in a book.  
  
"Hey Jens, up for a walk?" asked Genevieve cheerfully.  
  
Jenny gave her mother a trace of a suspicious look, before quietly agreeing. Jenny darted up to her dormitory to return her book to it's place and then followed her mother out the portrait hole. When they had away from the Fat Lady, Jenny asked where Genevieve had been last night.  
  
"Oh, getting re-acquainted with an old friend," replied Genevieve airily.  
  
Jenny raised an eyebrow.  
  
"I thought you didn't know anything about the Wizarding world before I got my Hogwarts letter," she pointed out, absently stirring up the dust on the floor with a wave of her hand and a swirling breeze.  
  
"You could say that I didn't know that my friend was a wizard," replied Genevieve, smiling even more cheerily. Jenny started to wonder if her mother was on something, or maybe the smile was faked.  
  
"Your friend wouldn't happen to be Professor Potter would it?" asked Jenny wheeling to face her mother.  
  
Genevieve froze, her smile fading.  
  
"How did you figure that out?" asked Genevieve, surprised. Jenny grimaced and told her mother about seeing the two of them kissing down by the lake from the window that was about halfway up the boys staircase. Genevieve flushed a deep rose colour, but Jenny didn't notice.  
  
"So, Mom, where are we going?"  
  
Genevieve, who had found her way back to the Gryffindor common room with the aid of a fascinating map of Harry's that was stuffed in her pocket, looked around a realized that she and her daughter had meandered off the well-beaten track, so to speak. They had been strolling down a dusty (and chilly) corridor with windows that overlooked the Forbidden Forest.  
  
"I'm not sure really, I just thought a walk would be nice...I was also hoping we could talk a bit... about your father."  
  
"What about him?" asked Jenny pointedly. All she knew about her father was that he hadn't been there when she was born and that half her DNA belonged to him and that he probably had green eyes. Beyond that, he was a mystery.  
  
"Well, One of your last letters gave me an idea about him, the one where you mentioned what Jon had said," explained Genevieve.  
  
"That my dad might be a wizard?"  
  
"Yes, I found out that his is in fact a wizard,"  
  
"You figured out who he is?" demanded Jenny, taken aback. She wheeled around to face her mother once more. "How did you find him? Who is he? Does he even know about me?"  
  
Genevieve smiled weakly.  
  
"I remembered his first name awhile back Jens, but I wanted to find something more concrete than a first name to tell you about, I also remember sort of what he looked like, so I asked around in Diagon Alley and well... Let's just say a few people recognized his description immediately,"  
  
"Okay, so he's popular, in the wizarding world, everyone seems to know each other to some extent mom, but that still doesn't tell me who he is,"  
  
"Well Jens, they didn't know him because he's popular, they know him because... well... he's famous,"  
  
"Does he even know that we exist mom?" asked Jenny again with raised eyebrows. She wondered whether she had even heard of him or not.  
  
Genevieve nodded.  
  
"I talked to him, and told him about you, in fact he already knew you... he just didn't know you were his daughter..."  
  
"So, Who is he...?" asked Jenny, an idea already forming in her mind of who her mysterious father might be, although she wasn't even sure if she believed the notion.  
  
Genevieve took a deep breath.  
  
"Well...?"  
  
"Your father is..." Genevieve paused, collecting her thoughts. Taking a deep breath, Genevieve finished the sentence, "You father is Harry Potter."  
  
Jenny stared at her mother for several seconds, slack-jawed and eyes round as galleons. Despite the notion her head, the news rocked Jenny to her very core.  
  
Two voices sprang into her head.  
  
A solid chant echoed through her head.  
  
_No-way-this-can't-be-true... No-way-this-can't-be-true... No-way-this-can't-be- true... No-way-this-can't-be-true..._  
  
A smaller, more tentative voice countered it.  
  
_My dad is Harry Potter... I have a dad... I have a dad... I have a dad... his name is Harry Potter... he is the most famous wizard in the world... the most powerful... I have a dad... His name is Harry Potter._  
  
Jenny felt two powerful emotions take hold of her body, fighting for control. One was the intense desire to run, the denial. The other emotion, the one that she had nursed tenderly deep with in her soul, hiding it from everyone else, flared up so that it shone as brightly as the sun in her eyes for a fraction of a second. _Hope.  
_  
The two voices suddenly merged in her head.  
  
_Why? Why wasn't he there? Why did he leave mom and me alone? Why didn't he know? Why did he walk away? Why?_  
  
Jenny shook her head violently. She stared at the floor as if it were to blame for the feelings of Hope, Denial, Anger, Fear, and Happiness that tore through her body and threatened to overwhelm her. When she glanced up at Genevieve for a few seconds, both of them realized the other was crying.  
  
Without another word, Jenny turned on her heel and walked away.  
  
As she turned the corner, and odd thought came to mind.  
  
_Damn, I have a lot to live up to..._

* * *

Eddie and Thomas spent most of the day with Charlotte, showing her around the castle and the like. Jenny was no where to be found, despite Eddie and Thomas' attempts to use their 'tour' to check isolated spots like the Owlery, The astronomy tower and even Professor Trelawny's classroom at the top of the North tower. The wizened and white haired old Divination teacher resembled an insect now more than ever. Eddie declined her offer to give him a palm reading and the three of them beat a hasty retreat down the ladder.  
  
Meeting Salina and Jon in the great hall for lunch, Eddie and Thomas noticed that Harry was watching them anxiously. His somewhat puzzled and worried expression vanished and was replaced instantly by a smile when Eddie caught his eye and waved.

* * *

Derek Malfoy was on the prowl.  
  
He had seen Hansen flit pass him in the hallway, her face damp and a breeze trailing after her. Against his better judgment, he tried to follow her, only to be blown into a wall by a wave of her hand when she caught on that he was trailing her.  
  
When he had recovered from the dizziness and the odd pounding in his head, he discovered that he had a large bump on his head. Hansen had vanished down the corridor several minutes before. Malfoy decided that he had to find her.  
  
Call it a hunch.  
  
Derek may not have been the sharpest tack in the box as the muggle expression went, but he knew his hunches. It was almost a talent of his. He knew whatever had made Hansen cry was important. The fact that she hadn't bothered to pull out her wand and hex him was another clear sign.  
  
Since the incident in the hallway outside of the charms classroom, she hadn't used her wind abilities against him. She preferred instead to demonstrate the large array of hexes and jinxes that she knew on him. Derek had become quite skilled at counter jinxes to undo the messes (and binds) that Hansen and his sister had put him in.  
  
They were a dangerous pair, His Ravenclaw sister and the mudblood Hansen. Along with the two other Mudbloods and Weasel, they made a tight group. Hexing him whenever they met was almost second nature to the girls, who did it without thought. He had only been able to get his sister four times, and much to his disgust, he had never been able to hex Hansen properly. Crabbe and Goyle never went near Hansen if they could avoid it and thus, Derek always had to face the two on his own.  
  
It made him angry. How could Salina do this to him? She was a Malfoy, pureblooded and she was his sister. How did the saying go? Blood runs thicker than water? His sister, as a Malfoy, should have been standing behind him, against the Mudbloods. Instead, she was challenging him, more loyal to the dirty muggles and muggle-lovers that were her friends than her family.  
  
Salina was a stranger to him now. The malicious pleasure he saw in her eyes when she hexed him hurt him in a way that he knew he should not be hurt. He was a Malfoy, tall and proud. Aristocratic, serene and untouched by his surroundings.  
  
Yet, the childish voice inside of him cried out. The little five-year-old boy who would play with toy broomsticks with his twin.  
  
_Why does she hate me? Why does my sister hate me?_  
  
He had never noticed her change until recently. She would disappear into the library for hours. Whenever she emerged, which was for either meals or bedtime, she would seem a little more distant. A little more thoughtful and her contempt would slowly swell each time.  
  
Derek paused. He could hear music, but it was unlike any music he had ever heard before. The tune was light and a single instrument played the melody with a mellow, warm tone. He came to a spot in the hallway and a door stood ajar.  
  
Standing outside it, he listened to the song, as it rose and fell and plunged deep into its player's soul. Slowly, other melodies would intertwine themselves into the main instruments range. The song came to its conclusion and the player began a faster song, with more of an odd...swinging... feel to it.  
  
Derek inched closer to the door, peered into it and grimaced. It was Hansen, standing in front of a music stand; holding a straight, black instrument. A clarinet, if his memory served him right. As if sensing him she whirled around and scowled. Derek could see the wet spots on her cheeks.  
  
"Shove off Malfoy," growled Jenny by the way of a greeting.  
  
"Why were you crying Hansen?" asked Derek, smirking.  
  
"None of your business," replied Jenny curtly, her face suddenly expressionless. Derek noticed a slight breeze touch his face and the bump on his head throbbed in warning. He was treading dangerous turf.  
  
"Come on, tell me what's wrong mudblood" replied Derek in mock concern.  
  
"It's none of your business Malfoy, Get lost!" snarled Jenny, conjuring up a small twister in her hand. Suddenly, The twister vanished and Jenny grinned slightly, seeming slightly smug.  
  
Derek felt his stomach turn to ice. Hansen did smile like that unless she had a reason to. He knew that she didn't waste time screwing with people's minds. That was his sister's forte.  
  
"I'm not a mudblood Malfoy," said Jenny, smiling in a rather disconcerting way. "Even though I think that whole pureblood thing is a load of BS, I find it rather funny that after four months of calling me a mudblood, I discover that you were wrong," Her smile broadened, "So, get lost Malfoy, and leave me alone, unless you want something embarrassing to happen to you,"  
  
Jenny jerked her hand slightly and laughed at Derek's expression. He was feeling the wind pulling at his trousers. He was gone before you could say "Apparate"  
  
_What a mood lifter... Bringing that git down a few notches was exactly what I needed..._ Jenny thought happily to herself, turning back to the book of jazz songs. She had been walking aimlessly down hallways, when she noticed a rather large door opposite the tapestry of Barnabas the barmy. Out of curiosity, she had opened it and found (to her surprise) a clarinet lying sideways on a chair (her clarinet), next to a fold-up music stand, a box of reeds and a book of jazz music that her mother had bought her when they went on vacation to New Orleans some years previously.  
  
How a bunch of items that Jenny knew were supposed to reside in her trunk on the opposite site of the castle came to be in this room, Jenny did not know. She didn't really care either.  
  
Putting the clarinet to her lips once more, Jenny lost herself in the little world that a musician retreats into, surrounded by emotion and music.

* * *

Ooooo.... Genevieve finally told Jenny and now Derek knows something, but he'll have tread carefully, unless he wants to lose his pants :P Jenny wasn't kidding.  
  
gallandro-83: Genevieve doesn't blame Harry for not staying, she's never been the type to hold grudges and she's not mad at him. They were both drunk, she reasons, and he was damn hot, so that further interfered with her usual restraint. Mostly, she's thankful that Harry gave her a daughter as special as Jenny, even if he didn't know it, and about Harry leaving, well, one night stands while one is drunk usually work that way, and now he feels pretty stupid about leaving. Also, hangovers have a tendency to cloud ones memories, so for a while the memories were foggy, then life (and his job as an auror) pushed them out of his mind, then he never got around to remembering. Also, Angela will show up eventually, She's the one who's going to probably rant at Harry, I expect. :P  
  
Loopy Luna Lovegood: Yah, I wish it was longer, but I'm in summer school, so math homework takes first place, rather than chapter length... I hate math grimaces  
  
Raquel: Yep, "Yay!" for Genevieve and Harry and "erhm...yay?" for Jenny. o.0 Derek is out for some dirt...Remember how 'close' Draco & co. and Rita Skeeter were in GoF? :P Trouble is a brewing...heh heh heh...  
  
Hry pttr: Well, I had to explain how Jenny came into existence and I wasn't in the mood for doing the story in flashbacks. :P  
  
FieryPhoenix: Glad you liked it ( yay! Did you like Anna Grayson & the order of Merlin?  
  
Also thanks to:  
  
Mjk306

CommaSplice

LaLa-the-Panda


	23. Encounters

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. JK does. Don't sue poor little me.... :P

**Author's note: I have posted the full summary for Heir of the Phoenix: Past, the sequel to Fate on my profile. Anyone who wants to can go check it (and my other upcoming stories) out. I can't actually say when I'll be posting any of them though...**

Author's ramblings: And the 18th of August was the first year anniversary of Heir of the Phoenix! I have been writing this story for over a year.... It's rather mind-boggling. I started writing this chapter on August 16th... just after I got out of summer school (Stupid math! . and I didn't fail it, if that's what your thinking, I wanted to skip ahead. I am now a 10th grader in grade 11 math) Then this chapter was put aside for a bit when my new story idea seized me and wouldn't leave me alone till I wrote it. (If any of you people reading this are into Inuyasha, go read it!!!! It needs some loving! And reviews.... Heh heh heh...) I am planning to write _Heir of the Phoenix _and _Learning my way _in alternating chapters, unless inspiration strikes me. Keitaro will probably come whack me with Tetsussaiga (a really big sword, for the non-Inuyasha fans reading this) if I leave his story alone for too long and Jenny will hex me if I don't finish hers! I'm being threatened by my own characters.... What is this world coming too?

On with the story!!!!!

**Chapter 24**

Harry squinted at the Marauder's map, looking for the little dot that indicated where his daughter was. Genie had given him back the map after lunch, nodding at his unspoken question. After he had given her directions, Genie went off to give a talk to one of Louise's muggle studies classes.

It took several minutes before he located Jenny on the map, before discovering that she was in the room of requirement. He grinned without thinking; So many good memories came from that room. He missed the DA more than he thought he ever would.

Clearing the map, he stuffed it in his pocket and left the office, making his way up to the sixth floor. When he reached the tapestry, he could hear the jazz tunes filtering out of the closed door. For a while, he stood there, marveling her playing ability. It made him wish that he had taken up an instrument.

Standing there, other thoughts began eating away at him. _What will she think? How will she react to me? Please don't let me screw this up somehow and make her hate me... _

Summoning his courage, he knocked on the door. _Funny_, he thought as the music stopped playing and he could hear footsteps coming towards the door, _It's almost harder to talk to your long-lost daughter than take on Voldemort it seems... _

The door swung open and Jenny gaze mutely up at him, clutching her clarinet in her right hand. Her expression was carefully neutral, but her emerald green eyes mirrored his – brimming with suppressed emotion.

"Hey," said Harry, putting on a weak smile, "Can I come in?"

Jenny stepped aside wordlessly. Harry stepped into the room and Jenny shut the door behind him.

There was a tense silence. Harry conjured up two red armchairs and sat in one. Jenny stared at him for a second with a puzzled expression then sat in the one opposite.

Father and daughter stared at one another mutely for an interminable amount of time. Jenny fidgeted and pulled on one of the armchair's golden tassels.

"Must feel somewhat unreal, mustn't it?" said Harry quietly.

Jenny nodded, gazing out the window, her fingers still playing with the tassel. Harry was silent for several seconds then he spoke up once more.

"I always wanted a family," he said softly, "when I was growing up, it was something that I had always wished for... I wanted a true family, but I was sure that it could never happen. Almost everyone believes me to be a hero, when they should all know that I just got extremely lucky, many times over,"

"That's not what Eddie told me," said Jenny suddenly, "He said you were really brave, that his parents said that he should ignore a lot of what you said about you getting lucky all the time,"

Harry got a very strange expression on his face. It twisted around for a few seconds, like he couldn't decide what to do with it.

"Ah," he said bemusedly after a few seconds, "That explains a few things..."

Jenny shrugged.

"It's just what he told me," she replied, still staring out the window. Harry noticed that her clarinet was sitting in lap.

"How long have you been playing?" he asked, leaning forward and motioning to the clarinet.

"Since I can't remember," replied Jenny, looking down at the instrument on her lap, "I'd always watch mum play when I was little and then once, she let me try and I liked it,"

"Ah,"

There was a ringing silence between the two.

"Erhm... Prof-.... Harry... Ummm...." Jenny seemed to be at a loss of what to call him.

"Yes?"

"Why didn't you stay?"

Harry felt his throat close.

_Why? Why did she have to ask this now? I don't even know why I left. I didn't even know Genie; she was someone I woke up next too. I just... left. I mean how could I stay? I didn't know her and I didn't know that I had gotten her pregnant. If I had known, I would have stayed... but at that moment, something compelled me to leave. I can't even put my finger on it. _

Jenny stared at him. She wanted an answer and he really couldn't blame her. Nevertheless, what could he say? _How can you tell your daughter that she is the result of a one-night stand that Fate engineered?_

"Jenny... Your mother and I didn't know each other very well... and... I didn't know she was pregnant when I left... but if I had known, I would have stayed..." Harry's insides disappeared when Jenny's gaze took on a hard edge. Anger had replaced Hope and Hurt had replaced the small amount of affection that had been in her eyes.

"I see," She said, her voice cutting like a knife and without another word, she had gathered her clarinet, music book and stand and was gone. Harry was left staring at the door, green eyes wide with pain. He had blown it. Burying his face in his hands, he felt a few tears run down his cheek and drip onto his pants.

* * *

Charlotte studied the portrait in front of her with great interest. In it, there was a snoring knight curled up against a fat white pony. Occasionally, the knight would mutter things like "back you scurvy ridden dog!" and "Come on! Face me like a man!" What Charlotte found amusing however was that he was also sucking his thumb.

A ways down the corridor, Eddie and Thomas were talking about something in low voices. She had wandered away from them, eager to do some independent exploring. Drawing away from the painting of the sleeping knight, she turned a corner and wandered down it, making note of the lefts and rights she made. She knew she didn't want to go too far, lest she get lost, something that Jenny's letters had assured her was a very easy thing to do. She turned another corner and smashed into a solid sweater-clad stomach, bouncing off rather painfully.

"Watch where you're going!" snarled the older boy that Charlotte had run into. He was tall, with dirty blonde hair and a strong nose. Wire, oval-framed glasses were portals to his angry blue-grey eyes. Charlotte took in his attire in one glance. Green and silver edging on his sweater and robes. Slytherin. Eddie and Thomas had drummed it into her that she had to avoid Slytherins at any cost.

His eyes narrowed as he took in Charlotte's jeans, runners and blue _Gap_ hoody. Something seemed to dawn on him and he sneered.

"So you're the muggle filth that that brat Malfoy's been telling everybody about,"

Charlotte swallowed nervously and wondered if she should scream. The older boy, who Charlotte judged to be about fifteen or sixteen, dug into his robes for something, his sneer growing more smug. Charlotte had sneaking suspicion that she wouldn't like whatever he pulled out.

"I'll teach you a lesson, lowly muggles need to learn their place," he said smoothly as he draw out a wand made of a dark wood. As he inhaled to hex her, a door to their direct left swung open and a slender girl with light blonde hair and Hufflepuff robes stepped out of what appeared to be a broom closet and froze, the mortification on her face was almost funny. Behind her, a tall Gryffindor boy with dark, longish hair and hazel eyes took in the scene with an expression of annoyance and bemusement.

There was a tense silence as the Gryffindor boy stepped in front of the Hufflepuff girl protectively. He glared balefully at the Slytherin and there was obviously no love lost between the two.

"Sniggle" snarled the Slytherin, turning to confront the two. Dimly, Charlotte recognized the name, but couldn't place it. She had a hard time keeping a straight face though as she inched her way backwards.

"Robertson," replied the Gryffindor, without the malice. He seemed to be amused by the scene in front of him. Charlotte saw that both he and the Hufflepuff girl had drawn their wands. The girl held hers in a firm grip while Sniggle was twirling his idly.

"You should really learn that picking on the minions never pays off," remarked Sniggle, waving his hand in Charlotte's general direction and with a flick of his wrist, he let his wand fly.

It sailed through the air and jabbed Robertson in the left eye.

"ARGH!!!!" screamed the Slytherin, ripping off his glasses. Before the wand could even hit the ground, Sniggle held out his hand, palm outward and the wand snapped back into it with a move that would have been at home in one of the Star wars movies.

"_YOU'LL PAY FOR THAT SNIGGLE! Rictusempra!" _Shouted Robertson, aiming at the Hufflepuff girl. Sniggle pushed her out of the line of fire and ducked the blast of blue light, which hit the corridor wall with a crack.

He whirled on Robertson, his face set in anger and eyes narrowed.

Dodging a stunning spell, Steve drew back his fist and punched Robertson in the face. The Slytherin spun around with the force of the blow and collapsed, moaning.

Calmly, Sniggle raised his wand and said _"_obliviate_". _Charlotte wondered what type of spell that was.

"You okay?" he asked, the question directed more to his girlfriend than Charlotte. The Hufflepuff nodded and stowed her wand in her pocket. She turned to where Charlotte had plastered herself against the wall and asked her name.

"Charlotte," said Charlotte. The Hufflepuff nodded and smiled "I'm Rachel,"

"Hey, I know you," remarked Sniggle, sliding his wand up his sleeve. Charlotte got the impression that he was the type of person who could handle himself quite easily without one, "You're Hansen's muggle friend."

"You know Jenny?"

"Of course, I'm on the Quidditch team," He replied and it suddenly clicked in Charlotte's mind of where she had heard his name before. Jenny had mentioned him in one of her letters.

"Now, let's get out of here before Robertson rouses himself," He said, casting the prone Slytherin a dark look. He took off at a brisk pace that Rachel matched and Charlotte had to jog to keep up with. As they were turning onto the corridor where she had left Eddie and Thomas, the two boys came running up.

"Steven! Have you seen- Oh... There you are" said Eddie, as Charlotte poked him in the shoulder.

"We were worried that you had gotten lost," added Thomas, running a hand through his hair. Charlotte shook her head.

"Well, we'd better be going now," remarked Steven, grabbing Rachel's hand and steering her away from the gaggle of 11-year-olds, "See you all!"

"Thanks for your help!" called Charlotte.

"It was nothing for someone as strong as I, The mighty Sniggle!" he called over his shoulder. Charlotte could see Rachel rolling her eyes. Thomas stared after Steven's retreating back with something akin to disbelief.

"I don't even know what he did, but I swear-to-God that guy must have a U-haul truck carting around his ego," he muttered.

Eddie stared at Thomas quizzically.

"What's a U-haul truck?" he asked. Thomas shook his head and muttered something that sounded like 'Never mind'.

"So, What did he do that warrants you thanking him?" asked Eddie.

"I ran into a Slytherin.... literally, and well, that Slytherin wasn't pleased, Then Steve and Rachel...well, they showed up and Steven did this brilliant thing... He chucked his wand at this guy –Robertson- and it got him in the eye and then his wand just snapped back into his hand like the Jedi do it in Star Wars! Then Robertson tried to curse Rachel and Steven punched him out and put some sort of spell on him... I think the word was 'obliverate' or something..."

* * *

She found him at the top of the West tower, framed by the sunset. The wind whipped through her as though she wasn't there, but the sky was beautiful with brilliant splashes of red, pink, orange and purple that looked as though they had been painted by a slightly intoxicated artist with a really big paint brush.

"Harry?"

He turned to her and the pain in his eyes was evident.

"She asked..." he whispered brokenly, leaning against the waist high walls that went around the edges of the tower, "why I didn't stay..."

Genevieve's heart sank. Harry would have told her the truth, and Jenny... Genevieve had not known how her daughter would have reacted and could not have predicted it if she had tried. She wasn't sure of the fantasies that her daughter had entertained about having a father, but she had seen enough of Jenny's mournful watching of other children and their fathers at the playground to know that her daughter wanted a father more than anything. Both father and daughter had gotten more than they bargained for it seemed.

Leaning on the wall next to Harry, Genevieve placed a hand on his shoulder.

"She'll come around eventually... It's going to take her awhile though..."

"She hates me," said Harry bitterly, staring at his feet.

"Take comfort in the fact that she probably hates me too right now... I never knew what to tell her..." replied Genevieve, reaching over to push his hair away from his eyes. Harry gave her a sideways glance.

"What did you tell her?" he asked curiously.

"I told her she had your eyes," said Genevieve, smiling, "Because I remembered them... your eyes... from when we.... " A blush creeped up her neck.

"Oh..." replied Harry, his lips tugged into a faint smile and Genevieve could see his cheeks colour ever so slightly. "What else did you tell her?" he asked.

"Not much.... I sort of avoided the subject and anything strange that happened, I knew had to have come from you..." she gave him a wink.

Harry smile broadened a little, but not much.

_Oh well, It's a start... _

* * *

I apologize for the shorter than usual chapter. I figured I might as well get this up fast, lest people find me and threaten me with sharp writing quills and that would burst my happy bubble.

My Common Sense (This is the part of my brain that yells at me in my beta reader's a.k.a. Alec's voice,) would like to note that I am rather hyper and extremely happy due to the fact that I made the Improv team!!!!!

And now my reviewers...

alexandra: Well, I can say I don't know you, but Ironically, I have a character named "Alexandra" in one of my original stories. I modeled Aly after myself and too a lesser extent; Hermione (Hermione does not read in class... She takes notes, lol). You could say you and I have similar personalities. As for who I am... Well... I'm Janna, 15 years old, female, Canadian, a little crazy.... There's more about me in my profile. I'm glad you like my stories My happy bubble feels very inflated.

Raquel: Heeheehee.... That Slytherin was nasty! ï 


	24. Reflections

A/N: I am sooooo sorry this has taken so long to post! I've had this finished for two weeks... but I suppose it's not much of an excuse, is it? Also, thanks to all of my reviewers during my 6 month long lapse between updates... I would thank you all individually at the end of the chapter, but my hands arn't up for it... damn carpal tunnel syndrome!

Also, I planned out who Jenny's, Eddie's, Jon's, Thomas' and Salina's housemates would be a longgg time ago. For those who do not remember the sorting hat chapter very well, Kathleen Gunter and Lauriel Vogler are Ravenclaws, while Brian Moon is a Gryffindor.

* * *

Chapter 24 

Jenny sat cross-legged in the middle of her dormitory and glared at the little tornadoes that were chasing each other around her. They were barely visible, as there was not much dust in the room that would give away their presence, but easily felt. Whirling breezes ruffled the hangings around the four-poster beds and the curtains on the windows.

She knew she should be in Defense against the Dark Arts class, but she hadn't been able to even go near the class room without a breeze kicking up. At first, Eddie had tried to convince her to go to class that morning, but when a mini-tornado wreaked some havoc with his thick, red hair, he decided to leave the subject be and promised to let her copy his notes.

"Jenny?" called a voice. It was Aimee.

"What!" yelled back Jenny, a little harsher than normal.

Aimee stuck her head in the door of the dormitory.

"You don't have to yell at me y'know" she said with raised eyebrows, "I just wanted to know if you wanted to talk,"

Jenny shook her head violently. Two of the little tornadoes joined together and formed a slightly larger one that went around beating up the smaller tornadoes. Aimee shrugged and went over to her night table, grabbed her glasses and left the room. Jenny sighed as she heard the other girl's footsteps fade away down the spiral staircase.

Returning to her brooding thoughts, the breeze whirling around the room got even stronger.

_I am the result of A BLOODY ONE NIGHT STAND. Mum never even told me and He…He didn't even stay! _

A loud alarm bell going off and a startled yell rudely interrupted her inner raging. _Was that Eddie? _

Rising to her feet, Jenny crossed the room and pulled open the door and was about to step out onto the stairs before she realized that there were no stairs anymore, but a stone slide twisting down out of sight.

Leaning out, she could hear Eddie swearing at the bottom of the steps and the laughter of several people in the common room. She knew that Eddie's ears would be bright red had she been able to see him and the mental image brought a small smile to her face.

Stepping out onto the slide, she held onto the door frame as she angled herself sideways. While the slide looked rough, it had been bewitched to be perfectly smooth and it took a lot of concentration to keep her feet from flying out from underneath her. When she let go, sliding upright and sideways as though she was on a snowboard, relying heavily on some air currents to keep her upright. She jumped the last two feet and landed heavily next to where Eddie sat on the floor.

"Why don't they tell us about this sort of thing?" raged Eddie, motioning to the stairs.

Jenny laughed and pulled her friend to his feet.

"They do, but it's in Hogwarts, A History," she replied.

"Ah, Hogwarts, a History," muttered Eddie darkly, "I swear I will never read that book, even if it's just to spite Mum….Anyways," he continued, his voice brightening, "Here's the notes I promised you… just copy them and give them back to me okay?"

"Okay," said Jenny, taking them from his hand. There were quite a lot of them.

"Thanks Eddie," she said, giving him a small smile.

"No problem," said Eddie, "Anyhow, I have to go get some stuff from the library, I'll see you later," He turned on his heel and crossed the room, studiously avoiding the laughing looks of the older students, and crawled out the portrait hole.

* * *

"Go Fish" said Kathleen Gunter, smirking from behind her cards. 

"Bah…You suck," groused Jon, reaching for the large pile of exploding snap cards in the middle of the table. Kathleen smiled and flicked her dark red hair over her shoulder. The short Ravenclaw's hazel eyes danced with mischief.

"I'm next," commented Brian, the sole Gryffindor at the table, frowning at his cards. "Charlotte," he continued amicably, "You wouldn't happen to have an ace of hearts?"

"Yep," she replied, picking the card from her deck and tossing it to him, "Here you go."

Brian grinned and set down another pair in front of him, raising the number of pairs in his possession to 10. Several groans and dark mutterings were heard around the table. They were playing in the library, a tricky gamble, as exploding snap cards were an iffy subject where hawkish Madam Pince was concerned.

"How do you do it Moon?" demanded Thomas, fixing the blonde Gryffindor boy with a desperate look. Brian's smile brightened a few watts. "Practice mate…Practice, now do you have an eight of spades?" was the reply.

Grumbling, Thomas forked the card over. Brian then turned to Lauriel Vogler and asked her to part with her two of clubs. He was finally sent Fishing by Kathleen, who seemed to be doing that to everyone.

"My turn," called out Charlotte, "Lauriel, do you have a four of-"

BANG!

Half the cards ignited, causing the second deck to go off.

BANG.

Thomas swore and felt his eyebrows. Charlotte stuck two singed fingers in her mouth. Kathleen was putting out the fire on her skirt when she had dropped the cards and Lauriel was wiping the explosion residue off her tortoiseshell glasses. They all started laughing however, when Brian climbed to his feet, as he had been driven backwards by the explosion of all his pairs, plus his hand. The stocky Gryffindor boy's face was black with soot and his eyebrows were no more.

Charlotte noticed Madam Pince stalking towards them from across the library and the first years swept the remains of the cards into a rubbish bin and ran for the door before Madam Pince could start screeching.

When they cleared the door, and turned a corner, they slumped back against the cold stonewall and started laughing again. Brian mumbled something about washing up and took off down the corridor, causing them to laugh even harder.

"Hey Kathleen, how come you were able to send everyone fishing?" asked Charlotte when they had calmed down slightly.

"I had a lot of spades…. And no one thought to ask me for them, everyone seemed to think I had hearts," the Ravenclaw girl replied, winking. They all gazed at her, confused for a few seconds, before Thomas broke down laughing.

"Kathleen's a nasty piece of work, don't you know that…?" he said to the others.

"Just give me chocolate and no one will get hurt," said Kathleen sweetly, giving them a doe-eyed look. There was a sinister smile on her face.

"She's already done eleven chocolate hold ups on the common room…I don't know how the hell we put up with her…" said Lauriel, rolling her eyes.

"Chocolate holdups?" asked Charlotte, confused.

"She takes stuff for ransom," explained Thomas, "Last time, she did it with Mikhail's cat, and in order for us to get anything back, we must pay her in chocolate and solve her riddles, and most Ravenclaws can't resist good riddles, so we ending up giving her chocolate too just to reward her for the challenge,"

Charlotte gave Kathleen a wary glance, then pulled a Hershey's kiss out of her pocket and experimentally chucked it at the shorter girl, who squealed with delight, caught it, ripped off the wrapper and popped it in her mouth.

Just then, Eddie wandered by, lost in thought. A tap on the shoulder from Thomas brought him out of his reverie.

"Oh, hey guys… Do any of you guys have any idea about what's up with Jens?" he asked. There was a collective shrug.

"I haven't seen her for like two days," remarked Kathleen. Everyone save Charlotte and Thomas murmured in agreement.

"I don't think she's eaten in awhile either," said Thomas, "Something must have really got to her… do you think it has something to do with her Mum visiting?" All eyes turned to Charlotte.

"I don't know why Gene- err… Jenny's mum came up here… she just said she had to see an old friend," she answered nervously, twirling a lock of blonde hair around her finger.

"Isn't Jenny's mum a muggle? I remember Jens saying that she hadn't known anything about magic before coming to Hogwarts awhile ago," remarked Brian, who had just returned. He still had soot instead of eyebrows, but the rest of his face was scrubbed clean. "How can her mum have a friend at Hogwarts if they didn't know about magic?" he continued. Charlotte shrugged.

"I dunno, I just came to see Jenny," she replied.

"Fair enough," said Brian, scratching his neck, "Eddie, Do you have any ideas about why her mum came?"

Eddie shifted uncomfortably, before nodding.

"I think I know why… I've seen Jenny's mum and Harr- err – Professor Potter walking around the grounds together,"

It was as if a giant light bulb went on over Kathleen's and Lauriel's heads. They put two and two together so fast that it would have made Rowena Ravenclaw proud.

"Professor Potter is Jenny's dad?" asked Lauriel.

"We think so," replied Eddie with a glance at Thomas, "but we're not sure,"

"That's so cool! I mean, I've always wondered if they were like related in some way, because they look so much alike," remarked Kathleen, nearly dancing with excitement.

"AHHHHHH!"

Everyone looked up just in time to see a blonde blur with his pants at half-mast streak by them; stumbling, screaming and swearing. "…AND DON'T TRY THAT AGAIN!" a girl's voice bellowed from somewhere down the corridor.

"Do my eyes deceive me or was that Malfoy?" asked Thomas in a faint voice, his eyes roughly the size of galleons. Jon, Eddie, Brian and Lauriel were too stunned to laugh even though Charlotte dissolved into giggles as they all watched the blonde haired boy run down the corridor and disappear around a corner.

"It was Malfoy," confirmed Kathleen, recovering from the shock first, "Now the real question is, who had the guts to pants him?"

As if on cue, Jenny stalked into sight, fuming and muttering darkly to herself about how she'd love to shove a broom up a certain Slytherin's ass. She stopped short at the sight of her friends and frowned.

"Malfoy was about to hex Charlotte, He was behind that statue," she informed them succinctly, pointing a thumb over her shoulder at a sculpture of a witch that was about twenty metres behind her, before crossing her arms and glaring at them. She looked disheveled, had dark circles under her sunken green eyes and her hair was crazy mass of ringlets that stuck out in all directions.

"Hey, Jens… Cut it out, It's creepy when you do that. I feel like a ghost," remarked Jon, stepping forward and hitting her shoulder lightly. Jenny's gaze softened a little, but not much.

"What are you guys all here for?" she asked coldly.

"We were playing Go Fish with an exploding snap deck in the library," answered Thomas, massaging his still singed eyebrows.

"Ah," replied Jenny, recognizing the hazards of that gamble immediately.

"Did you just pants Malfoy?" asked Brian eagerly. Jenny nodded. She was too irritated at everything to even relish the thought of her deed, let alone reply properly. There was an uncomfortable silence, before both Kathleen and Lauriel made up excuses about homework and left. Brian wandered off, singing to himself in a quiet voice and doing pathetic rendition of the Moonwalk. The tune sounded vaguely like "_Malfoy got pantsed, Malfoy got pantsed, booyah, ho hum de lah, Malfoy got pantsed…_"

"Wait till Salina finds out, I'll bet she'll be dancing for the rest of the week," remarked Thomas suddenly with a wry grin. Eddie let out a low whistle and nodded in agreement. Jenny just stood there looking like she'd swallowed a lemon and Charlotte was looking distinctly out of place, in her pink sweater and blue jeans, but the muggle girl didn't seem to mind, instead she was looking at her friend with a growing look of concern.

"You okay Jens?"

"Do I _look _okay!" snapped Jenny, a miniature tornado appeared out of no where and was displacing dust and dirt at Jenny's feet.

"No, but you don't look okay most of the time," replied Charlotte, unfazed.

"What's that supposed to mean?" A second little tornado appeared, causing a cloud to rise up. Thomas sneezed and Eddie delicately pinched his nose shut. Jon backed up several paces and pulled a small cylinder out of his pocket.

"Nothing in particular," replied Charlotte, "Just calm down. Yeesh, with the way you've been acting you'd think that someone had died or the world was going to end or that Bobby was up to his old habits again,"

"Oh _Really_, so you want me to _calm down_" ground out Jenny, her fists clenching. A third little tornado appeared.

With a sigh, Charlotte stepped forward and struck the left side of Jenny's face lightly. Lightly by Charlotte's stardards anyhow; which meant the blow left a stinging red mark instead of a bruise. All three boys gasped.

"Snap out of it Jens! When's the last time that you had a square meal?" demanded the blonde girl. Jenny's mouth fell open stupidly and she reached up and gingerly touched her cheek.

"You hit me…" she whispered faintly.

"You need it, You've been acting like a spoiled brat, all snappish and rude. What's got you acting all weird?"

"I…"

"You." shot back Charlotte calmly, "You _what…?_"

"I… don't want to talk about it,"

"Well, you'd better talk about it soon. Did someone die?"

Jenny looked as though she was about to reply verbally, but thought better of it and shook her head.

"Is someone you care about sick or grievously injured?"

Again, Jenny shook her head

"Are _you _sick or grievously injured?"

"No," snorted Jenny, "What does this got to do with anything?"

"It proves that whatever you're so worked up about isn't all that terrible,"

Jenny's mouth opened and closed silently, before she sullenly shrugged her shoulders.

"Okay… um… then let's go get lunch," she said quietly.

"That's more like it girl," replied Charlotte with a grin, patting her friend on the shoulder. Jenny mustered up a weak smile in return and allowed herself to be led to the Great Hall.

* * *

"What do you think of spending the Christmas holidays with us Harry?" asked Genevieve later that day, sitting across from him in his office. They were eating spaghetti, brought by a small, ugly creature that Harry had introduced as Dobby. 

Harry glanced up from his dinner, startled.

"I… I usually… spend Christmas with the Weasley's, but yes… I would like to spend the Christmas holidays with you and Jenny… Have you talked to her about it?"

"Actually… I havn't," replied Genevieve meekly, pushing the noodles on her plate around for a moment or two.

"Why not?" asked Harry with a twisted expression on his face, "I don't think she wants me ruining her Holidays,"

"Is there a better time that you two can get to know each other?" replied Genevieve. "She's your daughter and you're her father. I think she should get to know you first before she decides to hate you. If she gets to know you and still hates you… Well… not much that we can do about that,"

Harry nodded, understanding.

"When are you going to tell her?" he asked, sipping some tea.

"When I see her next and preferably not near anything she can break," answered Genevieve with a sigh.

"Ah."

* * *

"You've invited him to do _WHAT!_" shrieked Jenny, her green eyes wide. She was better looking than she had been that morning. Charlotte had insisted on brushing her hair and all but force-fed her a second helping of stew and piece of apple pie, but her eyes were still rimmed with the dark lines of fatigue. 

"I invited him to spend the holidays with us, in London," repeated Genevieve patiently, "It'll be a good time to get to know him… He _is _your father."

"He's only my father because you both were drunk!"

Genevieve winced.

"True…" she replied with a sigh. Jenny turned her back and started to walk away.

"Jenny! Come back here!" called Genevieve as Jenny disappeared into the shadows.

"No."

"Your disapproval doesn't change anything Jenny. He is staying with us and that's that! Now stop behaving like this!" scolded Genevieve, the sharp tone sounding wholly foreign coming from her mouth.

"NO, I WON'T!" bellowed Jenny from several meters away, the echoes amplifying the anger and pain in the words.

Genevieve heard her daughter's footsteps fade and knew better than to follow. It was when the sharp, echoing clicks of Jenny's shoes finally became inaudible that Genevieve let the tears that had been smarting at her eyes fall.


	25. Rough ride

A/N: When I wrote the 6th chapter, I honestly couldn't remember whether muggles had been able to get on the platform, so I wrote that anyone who was aware of and _looking _for it could come through the gateway. I now know better, but for the sake of the story, I'm going with what I wrote in Chapter 6.

**Chapter 25**

Jenny gazed out the windows of the Hogwart's express with a distinctly melancholy expression. Snow covered the countryside in an unchanging white blanket and only the occasional house or stile broke the monotony of the landscape. The cold from the window was turning her nose from it's normal color to dull, icy blue. Behind her, she could hear Salina and Charlotte exchanging ideas of what they wanted for Christmas (Charlotte was explaining what an MP3 player was) and the boys were firmly entrenched in a heated and loud game of wizard's chess. Most of the noise came from Jon arguing with Eddie's borrowed chess set, while Thomas sat calmly with his fingers steepled and a smug expression on his face. It was obvious to anyone that he was winning and that he enjoyed it immensely.

Athena was perched on top of her cage and she seemed to be watching the progress of the chess game with a politely curious expression and for some odd reason, an elderly looking snowy owl was present also. Jenny supposed Athena had made friends in the Hogwarts owlery.

As the frozen countryside continued to speed by, every kilometer looking the same as the last, Jenny slumped back in her seat and sighed. Her mother had taken a portkey to Hogwarts and was returning to London the same way. Charlotte had opted to take the Express with the five of them.

After Thomas thoroughly thrashed Jon, Eddie and Charlotte at Wizard's chess, a game of poker was started and Jenny joined in and managed to win a large pile of chocolate frogs and pumpkin pasties, thus introducing Charlotte to the joys of collecting chocolate frog cards.

As they got closer to London, Jenny noticed that Salina was growing decidedly more pale and quiet. When she started worrying the bottom edge of her sweater, they all realized something was up. Salina never displayed any nervous habits, except when one counted her annoying tendency to tap out the melodies to several Weird Sisters songs with her fingernails on her desk while doing tests.

"What's wrong Salina?" Jon asked.

Salina looked up from her fidgeting to discover all her friends watching her and she shifted in her seat and drew her face into a neutral expression.

"Oh - nothing…" she said airily.

"Bullshit!" spat Thomas instantly, his stormy blue eyes narrowing.

Salina jumped at his tone.

"Nothing's wrong." she repeated firmly, louder this time. She glared at Thomas, her eyes icy. "What makes you think anything's wrong? I'm fine."

"I don't know who you're trying to lie too, but it better not be us – We're your friends remember?" whispered Thomas, his voice softer, but still dangerous.

"I'm not lying!" Salina sat up straight, her grey eyes flashing angrily. Thomas's head dropped for a second and his dark blonde hair fell into his eyes, obscuring them. He rubbed the bridge of his nose wearily, a gesture that seemed to make him age a few decades.

"I'm sorry to say this Salina, but yes, you are," he replied, "Don't think we don't know that something's got you on edge. I – We – know you better than that."

He looked up at her and his eyes challenged her to lie again. The others in the compartment remained silent, surprised by the interaction between the two and wary of the delicate balance of tempers.

"Really." Salina's voice was cold, emotionless. Her expression was poised and unreadable.

"Don't go Malfoy on us!" exploded Thomas angrily. Jenny felt a gasp escape her and Jon's mouth fell open. Charlotte looked back and forth between the two Ravenclaw's with a twisted expression.

For an instant, Salina looked like she had been slapped, before her anger set in. Her grey eyes narrowed and she was already on her feet when Thomas realized his mistake. She shot him a withering glare and was out the door before he could say anything.

"Salina! Wait! That –I- I didn't say that right!" he jumped to his feet and followed her out of the compartment. Jenny, Eddie, Jon and Charlotte peeked out to watch. He managed to catch the shoulder of her jumper and yanked her around to face him.

"Let go of me," hissed Salina.

"No…" Thomas faltered. Salina's face was still expressionless, but he could tell she was fighting tears. He knew she would never let herself cry though.

"Let go of me White!"

Thomas grimaced at her use of his last name, but fought back the pang of hurt. He deserved it. Tightening his grip on Salina's arm as she tried to pull it away, he searched for

"I meant don't go all emotionless on us! That's what I meant Salina! Derek does it too! I've seen it!" He said hurriedly, words pouring out. "You have this thing where you just shut everyone and everything you feel out… you go into this weird _Vulcan_ mode!" He finished on a slightly hysterical note, his face contorting.

Salina's expression twisted and there was a puzzled wrinkle in her brow.

"Vulcan?" she asked, curious despite herself.

"A race from Star Trek" replied Thomas, looking relieved. "They don't have any emotions… Star Trek is a muggle show on the telly – My dad likes it."

"Oh," Salina frowned, "I see."

"Get you hands off my sister, you filthy mud blood!" snapped a voice. Derek Malfoy was standing several feet away, his wand out and an ugly expression on his face. Instantly, Thomas let go of Salina's arm and began to fumble in his robes for his wand. Salina already had hers out and leveled at her brother's chest. Jenny was aiming over Salina's shoulder and Eddie and Jon were sliding their wands out of the sleeves of their robes. Charlotte retreated back into the compartment, realizing that she did not have a place in this confrontation.

"Don't call him that," hissed Salina, towering over her brother, her rage making her seem taller than him, despite the fact that the twins were within millimeters of each other when it came to height.

"I'll call him what he is!" growled Derek, "He has no right to have his filthy hands anywhere near you! None of them have the right!"

The sharp smack of Salina's hand connecting with Derek's face made them all wince as the boy staggered back and collided with one of the sliding doors of the next compartment over. His fingers came up gingerly to feel the stinging red handprint and his grey eyes were suddenly hurt, and furiously blinking, as though he was fighting tears. In the same amount of time that it had taken for the myriad of emotions to appear on his face, they were gone, replaced by a smooth mask, his upset and anger made evident by only the slight flush on his cheeks.

"They have more right than you Derek!" shouted Salina, jabbing him sharply in the chest with the tip of her wand as she advanced on him, her cheeked flushed bright pink and her eyes narrowed. "They _care _about me. They accept me for who _I _am! They don't spout prejudiced _bullshit _about people who are different than they are! They cover my back and I can trust them not to run crying to _father_ whenever there's a fight!"

"I don't– Expelliarmus!" bellowed Derek angrily. Salina was flung violently backwards, knocking over everyone like bowling pins. Several compartment doors slid open as people peeked out to see what all the fuss was about as the friends struggled to untangle themselves from each other and stand up. Jon was on his feet first and he quickly helped Jenny up. Salina picked herself up off of both Eddie and Thomas and crawled over to where her wand lay several feet down the corridor. Picking it up, she stood. Derek was no where to be seen.

"Coward," she spat at the empty corridor and stalked back into their compartment as the compartment doors all slid shut, their occupants realizing that the show was already over.

Salina threw herself down onto the bench seat in an unusual show of vehemence and brought her knees up to her chin and buried her face in her arms. Jenny sat down on one side of her and Charlotte sat on the other, patting Salina on the shoulder. The boys took the bench opposite, their eyes all trained on Salina.

"You okay Salina?" asked Jon quietly. Salina shook her head without looking up. Her blonde hair became slightly mussed.

"No," She whispered, a wavering quality in her voice, "I'm scared…"

"Scared? Why are you scared?" demanded Eddie, leaning forward.

Slowly, Salina's head rose so that she met Eddie's eyes. Her grey eyes were bright with unshed tears and lines that had not been their before etched her face.

"Father."

Silence greeted her. All of them, save Charlotte, knew the malevolent side of Draco Malfoy, and yet, it seemed that Charlotte understood Salina's fear the best.

Charlotte's hand squeezed Salina's shoulder.

"Don't worry Salina…" she said in a halting voice, "I… I-I know what it's like...and it always ends… You just have to endure it. The bruises always go away eventually. "

Salina glanced at Charlotte with raised eyebrows, not entirely convinced that a muggle girl knew what it could be like. Charlotte ducked her head, sensing Salina's instinctive distrust.

"Papa broke my jaw a few weeks ago," she said quietly, studious avoiding the rest of their eyes. Salina's eyes widened and both Jon and Thomas gasped.

Charlotte's hazel eyes darted over to meet Salina's grey ones and instantly, like a jolt of electricity, the two girls suddenly forged an unbreakable bond of friendship. A slow smile spread across Charlotte's face and Salina smiled back. The smiles were contagious and soon, Jenny, Jon, Eddie and Thomas were also sporting big grins.

"You'll be alright," said Charlotte, "Trust me, ok?"

"Okay," replied Salina, "I'll trust you."

When the train began to make its way into London two hours later, Salina and Charlotte were giggling with shared stories and secrets.

"Fancy that…" said Eddie quietly as he nudged one of his rooks forward to beat up Jenny's sole remaining Knight, "A witch from one of the oldest Wizarding families around and a muggle as friends."

"Is that really uncommon?" asked Jenny, grimacing as she watched the rook toss her Knight off the board. Eddie nodded.

"Pretty rare," he replied, "Salina's family is part of the Fourteen families and for the most part, they don't mix with muggles. My family and yours are the exceptions really."

"My family?" said Jenny, surprised and confused.

"The Potters."

"Oh. Right …What are the fourteen families…like, who are they?" asked Jenny seriously.

"Well, there's us - The Potter's and The Weasley's. Then there's the Prewett's – I'm also a Prewett on me grandma's side – after them, there's the Longbottom's and the Diggory's… How many have I listed so far?" He counted up to five on his fingers, and then continued.

"There's also the Bones', the Black's, the Jones' and the Crouch's… Only I suppose the Crouch line has ended… so they're not around anymore. Then there's the Anguis', the Malfoy's, the Snape's and the Lestranges', and finally, the Pettigrew's."

"And they're the elite of the elite?"

"Yah… Pretty much every witch and wizard in Britain knows who they are. You'd be recognized especially." Said Eddie seriously, "Harry made the name even more recognizable."

"Oh … Joy." Replied Jenny tonelessly, as she directed her queen to capture on of Eddie's pawns. She had forgotten that outside of the school, her father was considered a celebrity. Only the newest, non-muggleborn students at Hogwarts stared at him with unabashed awe though and they got over it quickly the minute he assigned them their first Defence Against the Dark Arts essay.

"I don't want to be in the newspaper," sighed Jenny as she watched her queen beaten into submission by a bishop. "I don't want to be Jenny Potter…. I don't want to be anywhere near _him."_

"Don't worry about it Jens… Harry hates the press. Unless Rita Skeeter gets up to her old tricks – and she won't, mind you – it'll ages before the Prophet or any of the other newspapers pick up on it. By then you all have figured out how to deal with it all," replied Eddie, reaching across the board and patting her shoulder reassuringly. Jenny gave her friend a fleeting smile, then started as the train started to slow.

"Hey! We're slowing down!" shouted Jon unnecessarily, punching a fist in the air and plastering his face to the window, "Mum's home cooking is less than an hour away! I can already _taste _it…."

Laughter echoed through the compartment.

"I get to see Aunt Angela!" said Jenny excitedly, "She's meeting us on the platform."

"She is? Awesome!" chimed in Charlotte, grinning. Thomas dug his Discman out of his pocket and held it up. "I can finally use this thing again! Good music, oh, it's been far too long…" he said as he jammed the headphones onto his head. A blissful expression appeared on his face the moment the bass line began.

The brakes of the train began to seriously do their work as King's Cross came into sight through the fog and rain. Instantly, everyone went for their trunks. Around them, they could hear people in the other compartments doing the same thing.

As the train lurched to a stop, they could see that the platform was less crowded than it had been at the beginning of term. Jenny instantly picked Eddie's father out of the crowd and saw that he was standing with both Eddie's mother and Professor Potter. A little ways down the platform, she could see her own mother and Aunt Angela anxiously scanning the train windows for both her and Charlotte.

Turning away from the window, she met her friend's eyes, making contact with each in turn. Honey, Hazel, Blue, Grey and Brown.

"Well… here we are…" said Thomas quietly.

"So much has changed," echoed Salina quietly and the others turned to look at her, as she continued, "When I came to Hogwarts… I thought mu-_ggleborns_ weren't really worth my time. I thought you were just another muggle-loving Weasley, Eddie and I didn't even consider muggles as equals…. I guess I sort of know better now…" She mustered up a weak smile that didn't last very long, and her eyes were fixed on a certain spot on the platform over Jenny's shoulder.

Glancing out, Jenny followed Salina's eyes to a tall, slim man with Salina's silver blonde hair and billowing black robes who was already greeting Derek. He had to be Draco Malfoy.

"Well, I guess we'd better go…" said Jon, beginning to drag his trunk towards the door of the compartment. "People are waiting for us…See you all in January!"

Ask he reached for the latch, Thomas suddenly seemed to remember something.

"Hey! Jon! What's your phone number?"

This sparked much searching for quills and parchment as all of them, save Salina -Who stood there looking quite bewildered - exchanged phone numbers.

Jon was the first one out and instantly, he was swept up by a plump woman with short, sandy brown hair that was a shade or two darker than Jon's own. She was wearing a long black skirt and filmy looking grey blouse. Next to her was a thin girl in blue jeans and a pullover who had light blonde hair and the same honey coloured eyes as Jon. She had to be his older sister. Jenny noted the large silver cross that hung around Mrs. Golden's neck as she and Charlotte wove around them, heading towards where Genevieve and Angela stood watching the crowd.

Both women's faces split into broad smiles when they spotted Jenny wrestling through the crowd with her trunk in tow and Charlotte trailing behind, carrying Athena's cage. Jenny dropped her trunk the instant she was within hugging range of Angela.

"Good lord girl! You've grown!" cried Angela the instant the fierce hugging let up, holding out her hand so that it was level with the top of Jenny's head, before comparing it to herself.

"Really!" squealed Jenny, before catching herself. "Are you serious?" she asked, struggling to keep from jumping up and down from sheer excitement.

"Really Girl… Whew! At least an inch and a half is my guess…You look more healthy too - What do they feed you guys up there? Steroids and protein shakes?"

Giggling, Jenny shook her head.

"The castle is _sooo _big," piped up Charlotte, drawing Angela's gaze over, "They get tons of exercise walking around it!"

"Oh really?" said Angela, her tone interested, "Would it be worth trying to get a teaching post up there? All that walking could do something for these!" She slapped her wide hips.

"I don't think you'd like it Aunt Angela," giggled Jenny, "They feed us a lot and that wouldn't be good for your wedding dress diet!"

"Oh, Drat…" said Angela bemusedly, stroking her chin, "but you don't look any worse for the wear… Also, Scotland's got beautiful countryside – You sure I wouldn't like it?"

"Oh, Quite sure" came an amused voice. Jenny looked over towards its source and frowned when she realized that it was Professor Potter, who was now standing beside her mother.

"For one, its damn cold in the winter – no heating save the fires and also, there's a multitude of ghosts floating around," He continued, a wry grin on his face. His eyes didn't seem to share the humor. They were watching Angela warily. Jenny wondered what her mother had told him about her.

"Who are -?" asked Angela, squinting at him. She was not in the habit of wearing her glasses, despite her increasing nearsightedness.

"I'm Harry… Harry Potter," replied Professor Potter quietly, extending his hand. Angela's gaze narrowed until her eyes were merely slits and she looked down at Jenny for a moment before her gaze slid back to Professor Potter. Ignoring his outstretched hand, she took a step forward and slapped him full across the face.

"Angela!" choked Genevieve, horrified. Jenny's eyebrows shot up and Charlotte nearly dropped Athena's cage.

Gasps echoed all around as Harry staggered back, tripped on the hem of his long cloak and went down hard. Heads turned and eyes widened as they saw Harry Potter, Hero of the Wizarding world, land on flat on his arse.

"You _BASTARD! YOU LEFT YOUR-_mmmmmmph!" Angela'sshouting was cut short when Genevieve slapped a hand over her mouth, muffling her raging friend's tirade.

"Say another bloody word and I'm not going to get you that discount on the wedding photos!" hissed Genevieve in her best friend's ear. Angela's eyes widened and she stopped fighting Genevieve's hand as Harry picked himself off the platform with as much dignity as he could muster.

"You can yell at him all you want later Angela, but now is not the time _or_ the place," continued Genevieve, dropping her hand. She turned to Harry, who was gently feeling his rapidly reddening cheek and wincing.

"Harry, this is my best friend Angela Sessler…"

"Well met," replied Harry wryly, relaxing slightly as people began to look away. Angela didn't reply verbally. A deeply hateful glare was the only answer needed it seemed. Harry shot Genevieve a pleading look.

Genevieve shook her head helplessly. She knew that Harry was going to get it when they got home and she knew she really couldn't do anything about it. Angela had been stewing about Jenny's absent father in her place for twelve years. Genevieve had never had the time- raising Jenny, her teaching job and the symphony had kept her far too busy- or the mindset to do so, as she had never been one to hold grudges. That was Angela's forte. Her friend remembered incidents that had occurred over a decade before and she _always_ remembered the names of which boys had committed wrongs towards her.

"Well gang, let's get a move on…" said Genevieve firmly, "I have chickenin the oven and I have _no _intention of letting it burn!"

There was murmurs of assent, and a baggage trolley was found and Jenny's trunk and Charlotte's suitcase were loaded onto it along with Athena's cage. Harry tried to commandeer it under the pretense of chivalry, but Jenny insisted she could handle it herself, making a point of 'accidentally' bashing in the professor's knees, forcing Harry to hobble the rest of the way to the car, leaning on Genevieve for support.

Without much fanfare, they all piled into Genevieve's car and began the long and nerve-wracking drive back to the Hansen house.


	26. Home again

Author's note: I've put up some drawings and illustrations for Learning my way and Heir of the Phoenix on "My Space" offered by MSN. The link is in my profile for all those who are interested.

**Chapter 26**

"Well… This is it," said Genevieve as she began to parallel park her blue Volkswagen beetle in front of the three-story Hansen townhouse. "Home sweet home."

"I recognize the door," Harry said thoughtfully as he peered at the impressive brick building. From the backseat, both Angela and Jenny snorted in unison and rolled their eyes.

"Nothing else?" replied Genevieve as she got out of the car, looking slightly disappointed. Harry looked pained as he also stood up and slammed his door shut.

"The bedroom?" he offered over the roof of the car. Genevieve felt herself flush as she held the seat forward so that Jenny – with Athena's cage in hand - and Angela could clamber out of the car. Neither spared Harry a second glance as they made their way up the front steps. Harry watched as Jenny dug around in the shrubs that flanked the door and with a noise of triumph, pull out her hand to reveal a house key on a string.

With much ado, she let herself and Angela in, put the key away and ran into the foyer and disappeared up the steep staircase that led to the first floor, while Angela swept off down the main floor hallway. Harry watched Jenny's feet disappear into a room on the upstairs landing and sighed.

"Don't worry about it Harry..." said Genevieve softly, catching his melancholy expression. She popped the lid of the boot and Harry carried Jenny's trunk into house, pausing only when he heard a window slide open overhead and a silver silhouette soared into the sky overhead.

Stopping to look around at the entryway of the town house, he nodded appreciatively.

"This is a nice place you have here," he remarked, admiring the parquet wood floors and the numerous paintings on the walls. "Thanks!" he heard Genevieve say as she to disappeared down the hall.

On the stairwell, Harry noticed an ascending row of pictures. Stepping closer, he saw that they were formal-looking muggle portraits. The first one was of small, rather cute tousle-haired baby with round green eyes dressed in tiny pink dress and clutching a stuffed rabbit that was nearly as big as she was. The baby was propped up with cushions and was gazing up at the camera earnestly. Harry's eyes widened when he realized it was Jenny.

Curiosity and wonder took him up another step to the next picture. Now there was a solemn looking toddler with mop of curly brown hair. In this picture, she wore a frilly white dress that made her seemingly larger-than-normal eyes stand out.

The next picture was completely different – it wasn't a formal portrait and it held two individuals. A mischievous little girl with long brown hair and sparkling eyes gazed out of the picture at him, laughing and her arm extended as though she was waving. Crouched down behind her was Genevieve, wearing in a blue dress and sandals, also waving and smiling the camera. It was a muggle picture, but the energy and bright smiles nearly fooled his mind into thinking that they were both waving to him and laughing.

He moved up the staircase, inspecting each picture. He watched Jenny change from a happy and rambunctious-looking youngster to a solemn and barely-smiling school girl, still barely believing that he was looking at images of his daughter growing up. Intermingling with the formal portraits were more relaxed family pictures. Pictures of Jenny, Genevieve and occasionally Angela dotted the wall. Harry noticed with some mixed feelings that there were no men in any of the pictures, save an older looking one where two little girls in matching blue dresses sat with a severe-looking man in a suit and a young woman with light brown hair and brown eyes.

Harry recognized Genevieve right away, despite the fact that she appeared no more than seven or eight in the picture. She was the smaller girl and had the same dark blue eyes. The other, he assumed, had to be her older sister Margaret. Margaret lighter hair and her eyes were brown, and she looked more like the severe man behind her, with her stoic expression and folded hands.

He was half-way up the stairs when he came to the last picture that had been put up. It had obviously been taken that summer. Jenny was wearing the skirt, tie and blazer from her Hogwarts uniform, but the trim, tie and stockings were all still black. Her fly-away hair had been tamed somewhat by a headband and she sat quietly, staring at the camera with a shy, hopeful smile on her face.

"It's an interesting progression to watch, don't you think?"

Harry jumped when Genevieve's voice came over his shoulder.

"H-How…?" he stammered, turning to face her. She was standing on the same stair as he was, directly behind him.

"You forget that I grew up in this house. I know all the non-squeaky parts of the stairs" she said with a smile, moving up one step.

"Ah…" said Harry, nodding.

For a moment they stood there looking at Jenny's picture, quietly enjoying each other's presence. Then Harry felt a warm weight settle on his shoulder and realized that Genevieve was leaning against him. For a second or two, he struggled with what to do, before finally deciding to drape an arm across Genevieve's shoulder and was surprised to discover that she was the perfect height for it.

A door opened on the landing and Jenny walked out looking preoccupied. At the sight of them, she froze. Harry suddenly dropped his arm.

Jenny crossed her arms and glared at her parents.

"Hope I wasn't interrupting anything," she said coldly, before stalking out of sight down the hallway. Another door slammed.

Genevieve and Harry exchanged helpless looks as they listened to the sound of water being drawn in a bathtub. Without another word, Genevieve motioned for Harry to follow her downstairs. Leading him to the kitchen, he noticed that Angela was already there, drinking tea. An empty mug and plate was already on the table and Harry presumed that Genevieve must have already had tea.

Expecting an explosion when he walked into the kitchen, Harry was surprised when there was none, for Angela merely glared at him over the rim of her mug as he cautiously sat down at the table opposite her. Genevieve set about making tea for him and Jenny.

"Angela and I are going out to do some errands for her wedding," said Genevieve from the counter as she filled a teapot with hot water from a kettle. "So we're not going to be home for dinner. There's money in that jar up there if you'd like to order pizza or take out… Jenny knows the numbers of the places she likes and tell her she can get whatever she wants."

"Alright," replied Harry, glancing at the clock on the wall. It was barely four thirty.

After several minutes, Genevieve plopped a mug of a strong, fruity smelling tea and sandwich down in front of him. Feeling quite hungry, Harry thanked her and set to work on it as he listened to Genevieve and Angela go over what they were doing. It seemed that Angela needed to pick up the shoes that went with her wedding dress, along with a few other odds and ends. Then they were meeting some other friends for dinner.

As they got up to leave, Genevieve told him that they were planning to have a welcome back dinner for Jenny tomorrow.

Nodding, Harry watching them put their shoes on and gather their purses. Genevieve waved as she locked the front door and stepped out of it. Harry waved back and smiled.

But as soon as the door shut, he suddenly felt very alone in the old brick townhouse. He noted the other sandwich and mug of tea hat was on the counter and concluded that it was for Jenny, whenever she saw fit to come downstairs. Standing, Harry decided to look around the first floor of the house. In a room just off the kitchen was an impressive looking entertainment system, along with a couch and two comfortable looking leather armchairs. In the corner of this room was a desk with a computer on it and, along the far wall, next to the telly was a bookshelf stuffed with books.

The room further down the hall from the kitchen appeared to be a formal living room, with a huge, plushy looking beige couch and matching armchairs, with an ornate metal and glass table that stood between them. Scattered around the room were various art pieces and sculptures and in the corner of the room, near one of the large windows, Harry noticed a piano.

He wondered if Genevieve could play it as he wandered back into the kitchen. He stopped short when he saw that Jenny was sitting at the table with wet hair, calmly eating her sandwich. She was wearing jeans and a black, hooded sweatshirt and had looked moderately content in her surroundings until she saw him.

"Where's Mum and Aunt Angela?" she asked tonelessly.

"Running errands…" replied Harry, "When is this wedding of Angela's?"

"January fourth" said Jenny, "I'm in the wedding party and so is Mum. I don't think you're invited though."

Harry raised an eyebrow and debated whether he should remark on her rudeness.

"What are you going to be up to this afternoon? Genevieve left some money for take-out later on."

Jenny shrugged.

"I'm going to go see Todd with Charlotte. We talked about it on the train."

For a moment, Harry paled at the thought of his daughter mentioning a boy, but then his reason caught up with him and he remembered that a wizard named Todd Lorelei had said the prophecy to Tonks.

"Oh, that sounds like a good idea…" he said after a moment of watching Jenny eating, "I've been wanting to meet him. He helped me figure out some things."

Jenny's expression darkened as she struggled with the thought of Harry coming with her. "Fine," she muttered contemptuously.

Harry waited quietly for Jenny to finish her sandwich, and then waited for an additional ten minutes while she went upstairs to brush her teeth and dry her hair. When she came stomping down the stairs to put her shoes on, her curly hair swishing back and forth across her back, Harry had already transfigured his cloak into a jacket. He watched as Jenny opened the door, and followed her and watched her lock it with a key that hung from a thin blue string around her neck.

The clouds rolled by overhead as they walked in silence. The day was overcast and quite chilly. Jenny seemed untroubled by it, despite the fact that she wore only a sweat shirt.

Then had been walking for well over fifteen minutes when Jenny turned a corner and pointed at a dilapidated, old Victorian house.

"That's where Todd lives she said… Charlotte's probably already here. She likes helping Todd with his filing and sometimes she runs errands for him," said Jenny as they started up the front walk. Harry nodded, yet wondered why Jenny's best friend would spend so much time with a young man – he had appeared no older than twenty-five in the penseive – and if he remembered correctly, he was probably less than that, considering that Dumbledore had mentioned that he had been the Ravenclaw Quidditch captain five years ago.

As they climbed the front steps, Harry heard a doorbell ring inside. Within seconds of them stepping foot on the porch, the front door was opened by a young man with light brown hair and hazel eyes.

"Jen-!" He started to say, before he got a good look at the taller of the two people standing on his front porch and froze, his jaw dropping open slightly. Harry groaned inwardly as Todd's eyes flicked upwards to his forehead and back down to his eyes

"I-I…_Merlin's beard…_" He stammered.

"Good Afternoon," said Harry in a pleasant voice.

"Hi Todd!" said Jenny brightly, "Can we come in?"

Todd jumped as though he had forgotten that Jenny was there.

"Oh! Yes yes- come in," he said, stepping back. Jenny and Harry stepped into foyer of the house. Jenny kicked off her shoes and disappeared into the kitchen and Harry heard Charlotte's voice call a greeting.

"Well… um…Mr. Potter…I… um…I never expected to see you on my doorstep…"

"Call me Harry," said Harry, glancing around the house. He noted with some amusement that there were several framed muggle drawings that seemed quite recent on the wall in the hallway leading off the foyer.

"Um… Alright Mr. Pot- erhm- _Harry_… would you care for anything? Tea? Coffee?" asked Todd, looking quite star struck.

"No thanks – just had tea…" replied Harry, "Could you not stare at my forehead like that please?"

Todd instantly peeled his eyes from his scar and finally met Harry's gaze straight on.

"Sorry…" he said, looking flustered, "May…um… May I ask why you're here?"

"I would like to thank you," said Harry quietly. Todd's eyes grew to the size of galleons.

"Thank…_me_?" he gasped, running a hand through his hair nervously. "Thank me…for _what?_"

"For helping Genevieve," replied Harry, "and in turn, helping me find my daughter."

For a second, Todd looked completely flummoxed. Then comprehension dawned.

"It was _you_ she wanted to talk to!" he whispered excitedly. "I understand now! She said one of the teachers at Hogwarts knew Jenny's father was – and well – I see it now! You would know! Blimey - Jenny's a spitting image!"

Harry smiled mirthlessly. "Actually - I was the only one who was thick enough not to notice."

Todd's eyes widened even more. "You're not serious!" he exclaimed.

"Perfectly," said Harry grimly, "Which leads me to another reason that I have to thank you for – If it hadn't been for your prophecy, I wouldn't have known she existed at all."

Todd was speechless.

"Bloody hell…" he breathed, sitting down suddenly on an ornate wooden bench that was tucked up against the wall of the foyer. "I don't even remember it… Tonks took off the moment she had heard it – she repeated it to me, but I'll be damned if I could remember it all."

Both men were silent as they listened to Jenny and Charlotte giggling in the kitchen. From the clatter of pans and bowls, Harry wondered they were making cookies or something along those lines.

"Y'know…" said Todd slowly, "I think I sort of know how you feel, when it comes to Jenny,"

"Oh?"

"Yeah…" said the young man, his eyes clouding slightly with memories, "My family's pretty much gone. My younger sister died in a flying accident when I was fourteen – Mum died last year and Dad's been gone for years. So having Charlotte around is like having a little sister again. It's nice having someone to look out for – even if I've only known her for a few months… "

Harry nodded.

"That's about right…" he said quietly.

There was a sharp crack in the kitchen and both girls screamed.

Instantly, both Harry and Todd rushed into the kitchen, their wands drawn, only to be met with the sight of a tall, imposing man with wispy white hair and a bristly, shockingly orange mustache that that extended straight out horizontally - an inch past the man's cheeks. His pale grey eyes zeroed in on Todd immediately and he did not look like he was in a good mood.

"Mr. Lorelei!" he boomed, "Where is the report on the broomstick-" His loud voice startled Charlotte into dropping the wooden mixing bowl she holding and it hit the floor with a clatter and cut the man off in mid-sentence. He finally noticed the two girls standing by the kitchen counter, staring up at him with wide eyes and the dark haired man standing behind Todd, his wand out.

"You're Harry Potter!" he exclaimed, completely forgetting his anger.

"Yes, I am" replied Harry tonelessly as the man rushed forward to pump his hand. Todd seized the man's arm and pried it away when he noticed Harry's pained grimace.

"Mr. Palozzo, while it's nice of you to drop in, I was under the impression that you didn't need the report until tomorrow morning."

"You don't have it finished?" demanded Mr. Palozzo, his temper rising once more.

"It's finished," said Todd with a frown, "I was going to bring it in tomorrow morning. If you need it now, I'll get it from upstairs."

"Do that," said Mr. Palozzo irritably and Todd disappeared upstairs. Harry stood silent, not open to talking, so the man's gaze turned to the girls.

"And who might you two be?" he asked gruffly, but his expression had softened slightly.

"Charlotte Ramsey," said Charlotte, picking up the bowl she'd dropped.

"Jenny Hansen," said Jenny. Mr. Palozzo squinted at her for a second, before glancing at Harry with a puzzled expression.

"You'd be in first or second year at Hogwarts then, I expect?"

"First," replied Jenny, "I'm a Gryffindor".

"I don't go to Hogwarts," said Charlotte at the same time. Mr. Palozzo glanced back and forth between the two girls, obviously startled.

"Are you going next year?" he tried dubiously. Charlotte shook her head.

"I'm a… what's the word?" She turned to Jenny questioningly.

"Muggle" supplied Jenny, stirring the dough in the bowl with a wooden spoon.

"Yah… that's right… I'm a muggle – I only know because Jenny told me before she went there," added Charlotte, catching the troubled look on the tall man's face. "We're best friends."

"Ah…" said Mr. Palozzo, still looking back and forth between Harry and Jenny as Todd bustled back into the kitchen and handed a thick folder to Mr. Palozzo.

"Here you go- all finished." he said

Mr. Palozzo nodded and with one last strange look at the man and the girl with the same bright green eyes, he disapparated with a crack.

* * *

A/N: Hey! Another chapter up in less than a month! I'm proud of myself - Although I did vow to post this one before Half-Blood Price comes out on Friday, because I don't want to be halfway through a chapter when I read the book and I can only pray that nothing will happen in HBP that'll turn this story into an AU. Reading HBP will probably influence a plot mutation somewhere in what I already have planned for this story and its sequels; _Past _and _Fire and Ice. _

Until after the sixth book then!

Ciao!

Mockingbird


	27. Christmas Shopping

**Disclaimer: **HP characters (c) JK, Fun characters (c) Me.

**As far as the story goes, this is now an AU, but you'll see bits of HBP here and there. **

**Chapter 27**

"Have you done any of your Christmas shopping yet Jens?" asked Genevieve from the stove the next morning when Jenny trudged into the kitchen in her pajamas. She scowled when she saw that Professor Potter was sitting at the kitchen table –in _her _spot, no less – eating an omelet and reading the news paper.

Jenny moodily shook her head as she sat at the end of the kitchen table. She refused to look at either of her parents, one of whom was directly to her left and the other was off to her right, thus forcing her to glare angrily at the toaster oven, which sat on the counter directly across the room from her.

"Alright then," said Genevieve, plunking down a plate of scrambled eggs in front of Jenny, who quickly dug in. "Harry can take you. I still have to help Angela do some things that we didn't finish yesterday."

Jenny choked on a mouthful of eggs and coughed violently, expelling them back onto her plate. She shot Professor Potter a venomous glare, but his untroubled expression made her realize that he had probably already known about the idea.

"Where would we go to shop?" she ground out.

"Diagon Alley," replied Harry, glancing at her over his paper, which Jenny noticed wasn't any of the ones that her mother had delivered. It had to be a wizarding paper, judging from the moving pictures on the front of it.

"Oh… can I bring Charlotte?" said Jenny thinking quickly. She didn't want to be alone with Professor Potter. It made it easier to resist the temptation to jinx him from behind.

"Sure, if she's about," said Harry absently, returning to _The Daily Prophet _"- but didn't she say yesterday that her mum was taking her and her brother somewhere?" Jenny scowled when she realized that Professor Potter was right. Charlotte was going to go visit her grandparents in Manchester for few days. She began to slowly eat her eggs and said nothing for the rest of the meal.

Genevieve dropped the two of them off just outside the Leaky Cauldron and father and daughter entered the grubby and mercifully empty little pub.

"Morning Tom," said Harry to the wrinkled old barkeep, who smiled back. Jenny ducked behind him, obviously trying to avoid being seen and Harry couldn't help but admire her sense.

"Morning Harry – who's the pretty lass you got with ya?" asked Tom curiously. Harry froze, glancing down at his daughter, who looked torn between being angry that she had been noticed in his company or pleased that she had been identified as pretty.

She looked up at him, her eyes curious to what he would say,

"Ah…" said Harry nervously, placing a hand on Jenny's shoulder, which she promptly shrugged off. He struggled with what to say, knowing that if introducing Jenny the wrong way or lied could alienate him even further from her. In the end, he decided on the truth, something he had only managed to discuss with one person besides Genevieve - Albus. "This is Jenny …. My – ah - daughter."

Tom's eyebrows shot up.

"Well I'll be damned!" he exclaimed looking Jenny up and down. "I thought I recognized you! That was your mum you were with when you came through here in September?"

Jenny bit her lip and nodded.

"Well, Harry -" said Tom, turning back to him, "I've talked to Genevieve – She's been through here a few times – always stops for tea and a chat - lovely woman – but Merlin – You've always been elusive from the press – and she's never mentioned you – but how could you keep something like this under wraps?"

"I – ah – would rather not talk about it Tom,"

"Very well," said the old barman, returning to scrubbing the counter behind which he stood. "See you later Harry."

Harry nodded to him as he led Jenny out the back door into the tiny back courtyard. He already had his wand out to tap the brick when Jenny spoke.

"Let me do it." She whipped out her wand and lightly tapped the brick. Within moments, the arch opened to reveal the dozens of festively decorated shops. Dozens of witches and wizards were scattered about, all bundled up against the chill, but shopping and saying hello to one another all the same.

Jenny stared about the shops, obviously fascinated by the window displays, and when they reached Quality Quidditch Supplies, neither noticed that the other had also drifted over to stare at the window display along with a bunch of boys who looked no older than eight or nine. Harry gave it a once over with a practiced eye. There was a new Nimbus out – the Nimbus 3200, but from the looks of it, it seemed to be a cheaper remake of his Firebolt.

The boys were not much shorter than Jenny and she had to crane her neck in order to see the display properly over their heads while they all bragged about what brooms they had at home to each other and gawked at the brooms on display. Harry couldn't help but smile when the smallest one, a boy with light brown hair, bragged about how he had a Firebolt.

Jenny rolled her eyes and pulled away from the display, obviously unwilling to listen to the boys go on for much longer.

"Let's go inside," she said and Harry nodded in agreement.

Once inside, father and daughter drifted off in different directions. Jenny went off into the Quidditch team merchandise section that covered one side of the store, muttering something about looking for Eddie's present, while Harry drifted towards the back of the store, towards the book section. A book with the (quite literally) flashy title _In search of Wood _subtitled with _The official autobiography of Oliver Wood _caught his eye and with a chuckle, he picked it off the shelf and thumbed through it, reading tidbits of text here and there.

He didn't notice the beetle that alighted on his shoulder and crawled into one of the folds of his jacket as he turned one of the pages.

* * *

"Where's Harry?" Ron Weasley's voice could be heard from several feet away as Harry and Jenny edged towards the Weasley's table in the Leaky Cauldron's dining room. "He said he'd be here about now." 

"Look Dad! There he is now – Oh! Hey Jens! You've been doing your Christmas shopping then?" Eddie's voice rose over the bustling chatter and Jenny felt the gloominess that had coloured her entire day evaporate as she waved to him and nodded.

"Oi mate, when did you start carting around a look-alike?" asked Ron curiously as she and Harry slid into seats at the table and pushed their shopping bags under their chairs. Hermione merely glanced between the two of them and smiled knowingly.

"I'm guessing you didn't know about Jenny?" she asked pointedly. Both Harry's and Ron's jaws dropped open, but for different reasons.

"I - How did you? – Oh! Diagon Alley!" stammered Harry as a harried looking waitress plopped down two Butterbeers in front of himself and Jenny. "Genie said she met you."

"Yes – I thought Jenny looked familiar," said Hermione, smiling warmly at the small girl, who mustered a weak smile in return as she cautiously sipped the Butterbeer. "That, and if you had known about it Harry, I know you would have told us."

"Blimey…" murmured Ron, looking back and forth between Jenny and Harry with a stunned expression, and seemingly unaware of the conversation between is wife and best friend.

"Ron, stop staring," scolded Hermione lightly, cuffing him.

"Oh, right…" Ron shook himself out of his funk and extended his hand to Jenny, who reluctantly shook it.

"Eddie's been raving about you," he added, with a sly look at his son, who glared at him. Jenny blushed and her smile was genuine for the first time that evening.

"And about Thomas, Jon and Salina," added Hermione fairly, with a smile. "It seems you two have formed an interesting and diverse group of friends – I've always though that there needed to be more inter-house friendships, even if it is only Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw."

"I would try to be friends with Slytherins," remarked Jenny pointedly, taking another sip of her Butterbeer. "But they've only seen it fit to call me names."

Eddie shot her a disbelieving look and Jenny shrugged. "They can't all be evil."

Hermione smiled again. "Seems you're much more tolerant than your father, Jenny."

"That'll be Genie coming through, I expect," said Harry wryly. "I can barely believe she doesn't hate me."

"'Course she doesn't," said Jenny darkly, her eyes narrowing. "Aunt Angela and I do it for her. Mum's so nice that she once brought some bloke who stole her purse a home cooked meal in jail and I suppose you didn't notice all the sponsorship leaflets on the fridge."

"Sponsorship leaflets?" repeated Harry blankly.

Jenny snorted irritably and rolled her eyes. "Yeah – the _sponsorship _leaflets– from World Vision. You know; Thirty pounds a month and you can send a child in a third-world country to school and get them medical care for both themselves and their family. That whole deal. Mum's been sponsoring two girls in Thailand. Their pictures are all over the fridge"

"Oh," said Harry, suddenly understanding what his daughter was talking about. He had noticed the white and orange leaflets attached to the fridge in Genevieve's kitchen, but haven't given them much thought.

"You still haven't told us the entire story Harry," said Hermione suddenly, standing up and shifting little Molly from her lap to her hip. "Are you finished your shopping? If you are, we can head back to our house for tea."

"Sounds good," said Harry, picking up his shopping bags. Jenny followed suit and they followed the Weasley's to the large stone fireplace that graced (Or more, _inhabited_) one wall of the Leaky Cauldron's dining room.

Within minutes, Jenny had experienced her first ride by floo powder (though she was loath to admit it) and had come to the conclusion that the Floo Network hated her as she tumbled out of the Weasley's kitchen fireplace and caught sight of her hair in the large, ornate mirror that hung above it - The heat had done its wonders and now it stuck out in more directions than Jenny thought possible and the already messy curls had frizzed up into an almost afro-like style.

She almost smiled however, when Hermione came spinning out of the fire two seconds later. Hermione did not restrain such impulses as she set Molly down on the floor and the little girl took off up the stairs.

"You too? Don't worry... I know a handy anti-frizz charm that'll set us both right."

She flicked her wand in Jenny's direction and instantly, it felt as though her head and her hair had been wrapped in a shower cap full of cool, creamy conditioner. Grinning she turned to face the mirror and saw that her curls looked better than they had ever had before.

"You've got to teach me how to do that!" she enthused as Hermione performed the charm on herself and Eddie came sprawling out of the fireplace, covered in ash.

Hermione smiled as her son stood up and brushed the ash off his shirt and jeans. "Perhaps some other time."

"Come on Jenny! I want to show you my room," said Eddie, beckoning her towards the stairs that ran up one side of the large kitchen's walls. "Okay," she replied as his father and Harry stepped out of the fire place. She didn't give her father a second glance as she hurried up the stairs after Eddie.

She saw the house had only two floors and the first door on the right of the landing was Eddie's. His room, surprisingly enough, was painted green, but not the sombre forest green of that the Slytherin's wore, but a muted grass green that contrasted nicely with the navy blue beddings that were mussed about on his unmade bed. Peeking out the window, she saw what looked like an ordinary muggle street and players from the Chudley Cannons Quidditch team swooped in and out of posters that hung on his walls. Textbooks and clothing were strewn across the floor and his trunk lay open in front of his bookshelf, but otherwise the room was reasonably neat.

"Havn't had enough time to make it properly messy again," said Eddie, catching her puzzled look. "Mum likes things neat, if you havn't noticed. My room used to drive her mad."

"And I bet she cleaned it up the moment you left for Hogwarts,"

"Probably," snorted Eddie, smoothing the end of his bed so that the coverlet lay in a farce of semi-flatness and flopped down, patting the spot next to him. Jenny sat gingerly, suddenly realizing that she had never been in a boy's room before. Eddie didn't seem to notice as he launched into a explination of all the posters on his walls (A good portion of them were signed by members of the team, by the looks of it) and how he had discovered Molly playing with his wand when he had woken up that morning and somehow managed to turn her hair purple.

Their talk turned to Christmas and Jenny showed Eddie the presents she had gotten for Salina (A pretty peacock quill), Jon (A small box of Weasley's wizard whizbangs), Charlotte (A friendship necklace charmed to heat up its counterpart when touched), Thomas (An interesting looking watch that had planets instead of numbers), her mother and Aunt Angela (two opalescent bracelets).

"You didn't get anything for Harry," noted Eddie, raising an eyebrow. Jenny shrugged. "Maybe I didn't want to get him anything."

Eddie gave her a tolerant look. "If you say so. He is your dad though."

Jenny glared at him and Eddie shrugged. He had started to develop an irritating immunity to her glares of the angry-dangerous type. Instead of shrinking under the hostile emerald glare, he smiled and asked if she wanted to go play some Quidditch.

Jenny reluctantly agreed.

* * *

**Alright, I'mwas embarrased to post this chapter because it's like only 6/7 pages... but if I don't post it now, it's going to sit on my laptop's hardrive forever until it faces the wrath of my beta, who, convieniently has decided to vanish for the past two-and-a-halfweeks. (No e-mails OR phone calls returned... This is when I hate not living in the same province as him, because I can't go bang on his door and yell at him to get his ass moving.) I alsohated this chapter. Writing it was a bloody chore, instead of an escape. It seems the same for my other major fic... but still, can anyone spot the insanity that's going to break out next chapter? I promise Chapter 28 will prove to be much more entertaining _and _it'll be WAYYYY longer.**

Also: I've started a DeviantART account. Check it out. Link's in my profile.

And thanks to

Hilary (Ace's buddy)  
Livia  
kat6528  
God'sGirl88  
Elmire  
Quillian


	28. Introspections

I finished this about six months ago... I think I'd rather have it see the light of...well...the internet, rather than just sit on my hard drive. Unfortunately, I havn't written much else. I think I'll try to get another chapter or two out before christmas. Can't make any promises though. Thank you to everyone who's been bugging me to update. You all made me sufficiently guilty :laughs: I really appreciate you all!

**Chapter 28**

"BLOODY HELL! DAMN THAT WOMAN TO THE DEPTHS OF HADES AND LET HER _ROT!_ " Harry's outraged voice echoed through the house. Genevieve shot upright, her chest heaving. Glancing around her bedroom, she saw that it was only 6:30am and hints of grayish dawn sunlight glowed around the edges of the curtains. The voice that had assaulted her unconsciousness was loud and seethed with fury.

Sliding out of bed, she donned her robe and tiptoed out of her room and down two flights of stairs. When she had reached the landing above the foyer, she saw that Jenny had poked her head out of her bedroom, looking tired and confused.

"What was that all about?" she mumbled as her mother swept passed.

"I'm going to go find out dear," said Genevieve as she lightly descended the last flight of steps to the main floor. She could hear Harry pacing and swearing in the kitchen and when she rounded the corner, she saw that he was bright red, his cheeks flushed with anger and his dark eyebrows knit together.

"Harry?" said Genevieve tentatively, touching his shoulder.

Harry jumped, his face contorting into almost a snarl before he realized who it was. He reigned in his pacing, but his body still shook from barely contained fury. "Oh... it's you..."

"What is it?" asked Genevieve quietly. Wordlessly, Harry shoved a newspaper into her hands. _The Daily Prophet. _

The featured article jumped out at her immediately in the form of a large, coloured picture of Harry and her jaw dropped open as she read the title below it.

_**Harry Potter's big surprise. **_

_Dec 19 - When Harry Potter began his second year in the post of Hogwarts Defense against the dark arts teacher, he never expected to be teaching his long-lost daughter, _writes Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent. _Potter, 35, only recently discovered that he was the father of Jenny Potter, a talented first-year who already shown signs of following in the footsteps of her father's greatness in her position on the Gryffindor Quidditch team and testing at the top of several of her classes. _

_The mother of this remarkable girl, identified only as "Genevieve" by Potter, is a muggle teacher who Potter dated during his years as an auror. According to Potter, they separated before they were aware of Genevieve's pregnancy and lost contact, only to reunited several weeks ago. Whether she was aware he was a wizard while they were dating remains unclear. _

Genevieve read the article with raised eyebrows, her mouth twisting as though she had just swallowed a lemon. "...Dated?" she managed at last. "I don't recall dating you."

Harry smiled grimly. "That's Rita Skeeter for you, but this is one of her milder articles. She decided to portray you in a positive light - which is quite odd for her - but after what happened with Ginny, I suppose she learned her lesson. That, or she knew what Ron and I would do to her if she started spreading more of her crap."

"Ginny?"

"Ron's sister. She was a good friend of mine while we were at Hogwarts. Dated for awhile even…."

"Ah…"

* * *

"I'm going for a walk Topty," said Salina as she breezed through the Malfoy manor's large kitchen towards the back door. 

"Topty hopes Miss Salina has bundled up well! Outside be cold when Topty go to clean windows!" called the small, energetic house-elf, who was a relatively new addition to the Malfoy household. Her mother had brought Topty home the summer before to help their other house-elf, Sela with some of the more strenuous work around the manor.

This rare gesture of kindness from their normally indifferent mother had startled both herself and Derek and they had spent days testing the limits of young Topty's patience, which seemed to be boundless, unlike fussy, old Sela, who had been their mother's companion and caretaker since Pansy had been a baby and had lost most of the cringing servility that most house-elves possessed.

"I've got my mitts and a jumper," replied Salina as she put on a pair of boots and her Hogwart's cloak. Pulling open the back door, she climbed up the steps out onto the manor grounds.

Built on the one of the high dales around Yorkshire, near the muggle village of Darrowby, the wind paid no attention to the thick stonewalls surrounding the manor grounds and seemed almost to blow through them. Salina grit her teeth the moment she stepped into the wind's path, for it bit all of her exposed skin and made her cloak billow.

Setting off, she made her way across one of the lawns to a small side gate that she and Derek had discovered when they were seven. It was hidden behind a twisting morass of ivy that climbed the north and east walls and the manor itself. Pushing it open, she was nearly swept off her feet by the winds that blasted their way into the small tunnel.

Once she was clear of the tunnel, she realized that she had no idea where she wanted to go. All that had really driven her outside had been the intense, restless desire to _do_ something besides read in the library. Books were pale companions compared to her friends. It was difficult to find a book that told jokes like Eddie did, or one that tried to give good advice, like Jenny. It was even harder to find one that was like Jon, who really, she felt like she didn't know at all or Thomas, who, unlike books, told her things she needed to hear instead of things she thought she should hear.

She wondered what they were doing right now. Thomas had said he was going to spend Christmas with his mother's family in Austria, so she had yet to receive any owls from him. Jenny had seemed wholly preoccupied about something on the train, so Salina wondered if that was why she had yet to receive any letters from her friend. Jon didn't have an owl, so she doubted he'd ever send anything either.

It took Salina awhile to realize that her feet were taking her along the not-so-well-beaten path down into Darrowby, which was just over two miles away. She had only once been in the small village, when she and Derek had gone exploring there the year before last. They had managed to get as far as the pub before an old muggle woman had asked them if they were new in the area. Rather than explain, they had fled, giggling, back to the manor.

Now she found herself going towards the village again, with new eyes for it. Before, she and Derek had been fearful, whether it be because their father would have punished them or their actual fear of muggles, whom they had never really seen up close. Now, Salina didn't feel quite so nervous about exploring the village. She still didn't really know how muggles got on without magic, but listening to Thomas, Jenny, Jon and Charlotte, she had been learning. Thomas and Jenny had once explained to her how a telephone worked and she knew what an MP3 player was.

An idea struck her. Perhaps she could try calling her friends with a telephone in the village. She could sort of remember what her friends 'telephone numbers' were and she surmised those numbers were something like the house titles used in the Floo network - If you said the wrong thing, you'd end up in the wrong place. If you used the wrong numbers on a telephone, you would end up talking to the wrong house.

With her new purpose in mind, Salina increased her pace until the village came into sight. Soon, she found herself on the road that led into the town. Not many people were out and about, due to the bitter weather and only a few cars were being driven about and Salina narrowly missed being hit by one. Once she was in the village proper, she wondered where on earth would she find a telephone. As though someone had heard her wish, she spotted a small, enclosed kiosk with the word "Telephone" on it on the far side of the village green.

Walking over to it, she had to go around it twice before she figured out where the door to the stall was. Pulling it open, she stepped inside and shut it behind her. Grateful to be out of the cutting wind, she leaned forward to examine the telephone.

She recognized the odd part with two bells and a metallic cord coming out the bottom. Jenny had tried to draw a diagram of a telephone for her and while Jenny's drawing skills left nothing to be desired, she had been able to sort of understand the rough drawing.

After fiddling with the contraption for several minutes and being told by a mechanical sounding voice that she would need to insert 10 pence into the phone, she gave it up as a lost cause and went off in search of something else to occupy her time.

When she returned to the manor over an hour later, she could hear loud voices upstairs. At first, she wondered if her parents were arguing, but then realized that most of the noise was laughter. Mostly her father's, which piqued her curiosity. It had been awhile since she had seen Draco Malfoy genuinely laugh about something. The last time that she could remember him legitimately laughing about something that had actually been funny had been ages ago, when Derek had accidentally been clotheslined on his broom by a low hanging tree branch that he had failed to see while performing some more tricky speed maneuvers.

She quickly stripped off her cloak and gloves and ran upstairs. Creeping along the hallway towards the drawing room, she encountered Derek coming in the opposite direction, the expression on his face telling her he was also curious as to the source of their father's laughter.

"What d'you think happened?" he whispered. Salina shrugged by way of reply as they both peeked into the drawing room.

Draco Malfoy was sitting in one of the plush green armchairs that graced the room, pink faced and hysterical. Their mother sat across him, tittering to herself as Sela refilled both their teacups. She soon spotted them at the door and beckoned them over.

"Come in dears," she said with an amused smile. "You must hear about what your father read in the Daily Prophet!"

"What is it Father?" asked Derek curiously. Salina remained silent and craned her head sideways in hope to catch a glimpse of the article on the front page.

It took Draco almost a full minute to compose himself before he could read the story out loud.

"When Harry Potter began his second year in the post of Hogwarts Defense against the dark arts teacher, he never expected to be teaching his long-lost daughter – Potter, 35, only recently discovered that he was the father of Jenny Potter, a talented first-year who already shown signs of following in the footsteps of her father's greatness in her position on the Gryffindor Quidditch team and testing at the top of several of her classes – _Pfft!_ Greatness. Potter's gone and made himself a scandal that I didn't even have to start!"

He turned to his children, only to realize both their jaws were hanging open.

"Hansen is Harry Potter's _daughter_?" gasped Derek disbelievingly. Salina remained similarly rooted to the spot, too surprised to even speak. She had noticed some resemblances between Professor Potter and her friend, but she had never in a million years would have thought….

"You know this girl?" asked Draco sharply.

Derek's disbelieving expression melted into a sneer and Salina felt her blood run cold. He was going to trap her where she couldn't escape.

"Salina does. They're like best mates. Always hanging out with Weasley and those two other mudbloods - Ouch!"

"Be quiet," snapped Salina, but it was too late. Draco Malfoy's good mood had vanished. He had gone very pale and his grey eyes were cold.

"Do you mean to tell me that you are still associating with that filth?" he snapped, rising to his feet and drawing his wand out of his pocket and ignoring his wife's protests.

"They're not filth," said Salina, hoping to sound defiant, but her voice failing miserably in mid word. She found herself staring at her shoes, unable to look up at her father's angry grey eyes.

There was a crack and Salina found herself on the floor at Derek's feet, the side of her face feeling white-hot. She could see Derek's smug expression out of the corner of her eye, but she didn't look up until her father stepped over her and thrust his wand into her brother's hand.

"You let her do this. You let her disgrace our Malfoy name. Punish her."

"….What?" Salina wasn't sure whether she had spoken or Derek. Other than the occasional childhood tussles over toys and the rivalry they had begun at school, Derek had never laid a hand on her. Even at school when she spared him no pity, his ire, however influenced by cowardice, was mostly directed at Jenny, who was the one who routinely humiliated him.

_Still…_ Salina shot her brother a cautious glance. Derek looked shocked beyond words. He made no move towards the wand thrust up his nose.

"Father…" he said helplessly, his voice holding a pleading note.

"Draco…" said their mother softly. "The law…"

The white-hot anger in Draco's gaze, seemed to sizzle and fade as instantly as it had ignited. "Ah yes… The law," He sneered, snatching his wand out of Derek's hand. "Can't forget the all-mighty Ministry of Magic."

With that, he swept out of the room and their mother hurried after him, leaving Salina to pick herself up off the floor and quietly retreat to her room. She left Derek shivering where he stood.

* * *

Jon pressed his face against the glass of his bedroom window, reveling in the numbness that began to overtake his face, and in someway, his soul. He had never felt so torn. So at odds with himself. Home had been a welcome haven, its familiar sounds and scents as comforting as Hogwarts had been foreign, yet the moment he had stepped in the door, the yawning chasm that had spread between himself and his family had been almost too much to bear. 

While they all had greeted him warmly, there was a stiffness that hadn't been there before. He couldn't place it, but it was palpable anyways. The way his sister Ruth had sent him nervous glances across the table when they had said grace at supper and when his mother had made a point of wiping the cover of the family bible after he had found himself absently tracing the cross on its leather cover with his finger while watching television. The way his father watched him when he thought Jon wouldn't notice, the disappointment in his gaze plain for all to see.

They had been little things. Things that he had told himself that he could ignore.

Then Sunday had rolled around and it was as though his entire family had been walking on glass as they entered the wooden doors of St Margaret's Church. He had instantly been converged upon, his friends demanding to know what he thought of boarding school, what the food had been like and whether the teachers were monsters, while his parent politely conversed with other adults in the congregation, including Uncle Ethan, his mother's brother, who was the head pastor.

He managed to answer his friend's questions sparingly, telling them of how the food was always excellent and how Professor Snape, the chemistry teacher, was a malicious and greasy sleaze ball. They had listened eagerly, before being dragged off to sit in the pews by various parents and guardians and Jon discovered that following his mother down the aisle to their normal pew was one of the hardest things he had ever done.

St. Margaret's was an older church and the architects had lavishly decorated the altar and ceiling with images of the crucifixion, the resurrection and countless angels that wore long white robes while golden hair flowed around their wings. Yet even Jon's favourite angel, the sole one who had been painted with brown hair and always seemed to look down upon him kindly from the ceiling, now had an icy chill in his blue eyes.

Jon couldn't even bring himself to look at the large cross that hung on the farthest wall, over the altar and the preacher's stand.

The sermon had been agonizing. Not the topic, which had been the usual charity-inducing Christmas fare, but the completely unclean feeling that he had barely managed to scrub off at Hogwarts had returned with vengeance. Since when did a wizard belong in a devout family, let alone in a place of worship?

Before, he had never given much thought to the religious rhythms of his family. Grace was said before supper, Sunday services were attended his father read the Bible before retiring to bed at night while he and Ruth, who was thirteen, were still required to say their prayers - (A practice he had quickly given up on at Hogwarts after Mortimer Day had asked him what in Merlin's name was he doing, kneeling by his bed and muttering to the ceiling) and both he and Ruth had attended a Anglican primary school.

Yet he had never really given serious thought much about God or sin until now, however much the two subjects were drummed into his head throughout his childhood. He had never really comprehended how much such things meant to his parents, until the day a stout, dark-haired man in long, strange looking blue robes had come knocking on their door.

He had never gotten to read his letter, for his mother had spirited it away from him, the moment he had opened the envelope. He had been kept separate from the meetings, from the discussions that had kept his parents up late into the night. More than once, he had heard his mother crying. In the end, it had been decided. He would attend Hogwarts and his parents would try to support him in the ways they could. After the school had been such a loaded topic at home, he had been shocked to encounter the likes of Eddie, Thomas and Jenny on the train, all of whom were excited and eager at the prospect of attending Hogwarts and training to become wizards.

As he grew to know them, he understood. Eddie and Salina had never known anything other than the wizarding world. Jenny was eager to make a fresh start in a world where she was considered normal and Thomas longed for stable lodgings – a place he could return to year after year, something his father's prosperous position as a diplomat never seemed to provide.

Among them, he was the quiet one, providing a simple foil for their personalities. He had thought they were mere friends. People to joke, laugh and cry with. But now that he was far from them, he realized they were so much more than that.

They were his family.

* * *

Ah... this chapter is probably rife with grammatical and spelling errors. I'll go through and figure those out when I get around to writing another proper chapter, rather than all the writing I've been doing for my original novel.

I'm happy I managed to delve a bit into Jon's character. He's the quiet type, and now you can sort of see why.

Please review. Perhaps you can guilttrip me into updating faster. ;)


End file.
